Keep the concession and the main claim
雖 introduces material conceded for the sake of a further claim: often “although” or “even if”. The surrounding argument decides whether the situation is treated as actual or hypothetical.
雖
A reading procedure
- Bracket the conceded clause.
- Locate the claim that survives the concession.
- Choose a translation that preserves the contrast.
Do not force a modern 雖然…但是 template onto every occurrence.
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Find other occurrences of 雖 ↗Search finds spelling; it does not automatically label every occurrence with this construction.
zimai · AI-assisted editorial notes · Editorial pilot · not independently reviewed. CC BY-SA 4.0.
Evidence and further study
Linked passages below provide the primary-text evidence for these editorial examples. The readings are not borrowed from, or endorsed by, the further-study references.
Kanseki Repository · pinned primary text witnesses
Textual evidence. Individual examples link to exact source files and lines.
Edwin G. Pulleyblank · Outline of Classical Chinese Grammar
Further study: word order, predication, nominalization, negation and complex sentences. Book content is not reproduced.
Robert Eno · Introduction to Literary Chinese, Part I
Further study: an academic primer with annotated readings and exercises. Not imported.
Introduction to Classical Chinese · Schonebaum and contributors
Further study: function words and reading lessons. CC BY-NC-SA material is not imported into this dataset.
Thesaurus Linguae Sericae
Further research: contextual historical senses and syntactic analysis. No TLS annotation import in this release.
5 examples in context
雖曰未學，吾必謂之學矣
Even if such a person is said not to have studied, I would certainly call that person learned.
雖 concedes a description that the main judgment rejects. The preceding examples of conduct define the person referred to by 之. This contrast separates schooling from the speaker’s criterion for being learned.
Check your reading · What survives the concession introduced by 雖?
The speaker’s judgment that the person counts as learned.
不賢者雖有此，不樂也
Those who are not worthy do not enjoy this, even if they possess it.
不賢者 is the topic group; 雖有此 concedes possession of the beautiful setting. The last predicate denies enjoyment. 此 refers to the king’s surroundings, not a generic object inferred from the dictionary.
Check your reading · What does the concession grant without granting enjoyment?
Possession of the setting just discussed.
雖有臺池鳥獸，豈能獨樂哉
Even with terraces, ponds, birds, and beasts, how could one enjoy them alone?
雖 concedes the possessions while 豈…哉 challenges the possible result. The preceding account of alienated people supplies the political reason. This is a rhetorical question expecting a negative answer in context.
Check your reading · What answer does the rhetoric invite?
That such isolated enjoyment is not possible in that situation.
此雖免乎行，猶有所待者也
Although this avoids going on foot, there is still something on which it depends.
雖 concedes an achievement, but 猶 preserves a remaining limitation. 所待 identifies what is depended on. 乎 follows 免 relationally here, unlike the sentence-final question particle in 不亦說乎.
Check your reading · Is 乎 a final question particle in 免乎行?
No. It introduces the relation to 行.
庖人雖不治庖，尸祝不越樽俎而代之矣
Even if the cook fails to manage the kitchen, the ritual officer does not cross the vessels to replace him.
雖 grants the cook’s failure without granting a transfer of roles. 之 refers to the cook, while the subject of 代 is the ritual officer. The analogy answers the offer of rule in the surrounding dialogue.
Check your reading · Who would replace whom in 代之?
The ritual officer would replace the cook.