{"editorial":{"author":"zimai · AI-assisted editorial notes","status":"Editorial pilot · not independently reviewed","license":"CC BY-SA 4.0","licenseUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/","revision":"0.12.0"},"topics":[{"id":"zhi-object","han":"之","title":"Recover the object","family":"Reference","summary":"After a transitive verb, 之 can stand for a person, thing, or previously stated situation. English number and gender come from context; the graph itself does not supply them.","steps":["Locate the governing verb.","Read the preceding clauses for a plausible referent.","Try the referent in place of 之, then check the whole argument."],"pitfall":"Do not translate every 之 as “of”. The same written form also links modifiers and can mean “go”.","compare":["zhi-link","zhi-clause","ellipsis"],"query":"之"},{"id":"zhi-link","han":"之","title":"Connect a modifier to a head","family":"Reference","summary":"A phrase before 之 can modify the expression after it. Possession is one common relation; association, description, and a whole clause modifying a noun are also possible.","steps":["Find the head after 之.","Bracket the material before it as the modifier.","Decide what relation fits: possession, belonging, or description."],"pitfall":"An English possessive is a translation choice, not a complete account of the construction.","compare":["zhi-object","zhi-clause","qi"],"query":"之"},{"id":"zhi-clause","han":"之","title":"Put a clause inside a larger sentence","family":"Structure","summary":"Between a subject-like phrase and its predicate, 之 can help present their relationship as a constituent within a larger sentence. This is often discussed under nominalization or subordination; analyses differ.","steps":["Identify the two sides of 之.","Look outside that unit for the main predicate or topic frame.","Translate the embedded event or fact as a whole."],"pitfall":"A mechanical “of” can hide the actual clause structure. Not every noun–之–verb string has the same analysis.","compare":["zhi-link","topic","suo"],"query":"之"},{"id":"zhe","han":"者","title":"Name the one, thing, or situation","family":"Structure","summary":"A predicate followed by 者 can refer to what satisfies it: a person, thing, or class. In other contexts 者 marks a topic or a pause before an explanation.","steps":["Bracket the full predicate before 者, including its objects.","Ask what kind of entity the context supplies.","Check whether the phrase is instead setting up a topic."],"pitfall":"者 does not always mean “person”; a thing, event, or topic may be intended.","compare":["suo","topic","nominal"],"query":"者"},{"id":"suo","han":"所","title":"Focus on what an action concerns","family":"Structure","summary":"所 before a verb commonly builds an expression referring to what the action concerns, especially its object. It contrasts usefully with many 者 expressions, which refer to the participant doing or characterized by the action.","steps":["Find the verb after 所.","Recover the missing participant from context.","Treat the resulting phrase as a noun-like unit in the larger sentence."],"pitfall":"所 is also a noun meaning a place. 所以 may describe a means or reason; modern “therefore” is not a safe default.","compare":["zhe","yi","zhi-clause"],"query":"所"},{"id":"qi","han":"其","title":"Track whose, which, and whose perspective","family":"Reference","summary":"其 often introduces a possessive or demonstrative expression. In some clauses it contributes a conjectural, rhetorical, or exhortative force instead. The surrounding syntax decides.","steps":["Look for a noun immediately following 其.","Find a possible antecedent in the previous discourse.","If no nominal head fits, examine the clause as a whole for a modal reading."],"pitfall":"Do not assume modern 他 or “his” fits every occurrence.","compare":["zhi-object","pronouns","question"],"query":"其"},{"id":"er","han":"而","title":"Read the relationship between clauses","family":"Connection","summary":"而 links predicates or clauses. English may use “and”, “but”, “and then”, or no explicit conjunction. The logical relation is supplied by the content, not by a single invariant English gloss.","steps":["Bracket the units on each side.","Check whether they share a subject.","Test sequence, coexistence, contrast, and manner against the argument."],"pitfall":"A word-by-word “and” can miss an explicit contrast or a dependent action.","compare":["ze","parallel","ellipsis"],"query":"而"},{"id":"yi","han":"以","title":"Identify means, basis, and purpose","family":"Connection","summary":"以 often introduces what someone uses, relies on, or takes as a basis. It can participate in constructions translated with “by”, “with”, “because of”, or “in order to”. Start with the local structure.","steps":["Find the expression governed by 以.","Ask what action it relates to.","Distinguish an instrument or basis from an intended result."],"pitfall":"所以 and 是以 need their own analysis. An object can be omitted when context supplies it.","compare":["suo","weiyi","gu"],"query":"以"},{"id":"yu","han":"於","title":"Locate a relation","family":"Connection","summary":"於 introduces a relation to a place, person, circumstance, or comparison standard. English may require “in”, “at”, “to”, “from”, “than”, or another relation. Certain predicates also permit an agent relation.","steps":["Identify the predicate linked to 於.","Identify the following noun phrase.","Use the predicate and context to determine the relation."],"pitfall":"於 and 于 are not a universal license for silent character substitution; preserve the edition’s spelling.","compare":["comparison","passive","yan"],"query":"於"},{"id":"wei","han":"為","title":"Distinguish doing, being, and acting for","family":"Predication","summary":"為 may describe doing or making, serving as, regarding something as, or acting for someone. Some constructions also use it in passive expressions. These uses should be kept apart before translation.","steps":["Locate any objects or complements.","Try “do/make” and “be/serve as” against the context.","Check whether the sentence instead supplies a beneficiary or a passive agent."],"pitfall":"Modern dictionary readings do not automatically settle the meaning or historical pronunciation of a passage.","compare":["weiyi","passive","nominal"],"query":"為"},{"id":"nominal","han":"也","title":"Recognize a nominal predicate","family":"Predication","summary":"Classical clauses can identify or classify something without a copula corresponding to modern 是. A final 也 is common in explanatory or identifying statements, but it is not itself an all-purpose verb “is”.","steps":["Find what is being identified.","Find the noun phrase or description used to identify it.","Separate the assertion from the final particle."],"pitfall":"也 also occurs in other environments. Its presence alone does not prove a nominal sentence.","compare":["topic","zhe","ye-yi"],"query":"也"},{"id":"ye-yi","han":"也 · 矣","title":"Hear explanation and a changed situation","family":"Predication","summary":"也 and 矣 often make different contributions. 也 can frame or conclude an explanation; 矣 frequently presents a newly relevant or changed situation. Neither is simply an English tense ending.","steps":["Read the preceding proposition.","Ask whether the speaker explains a relation or marks a new state.","Look at contrast and discourse position, not the particle alone."],"pitfall":"Do not replace every 矣 with modern 了 and assume that the analysis is complete.","compare":["nominal","question"],"query":"也 · 矣"},{"id":"hu","han":"乎","title":"Recognize a question or an exclamation","family":"Discourse","summary":"Sentence-final 乎 can mark a question, often rhetorical. Elsewhere 乎 can introduce a relation comparable to 於. Position is the first clue, and the preceding clause determines its force.","steps":["Locate 乎 within or at the end of the clause.","For a final particle, ask what answer is expected.","For a relational use, identify the phrase it introduces."],"pitfall":"Not every question asks for new information; an argument may invite agreement or challenge an assumption.","compare":["question","yu"],"query":"乎"},{"id":"yan","han":"焉","title":"Resolve “there”, “in this”, or a final particle","family":"Reference","summary":"焉 can refer to a location or a relation understood from context. It can also function as a final particle, and in interrogative uses it may ask where or how. Several analyses must remain available.","steps":["Search for a location or circumstance in the preceding text.","Test whether 焉 supplies a missing complement.","If that does not fit, inspect its clause-final or interrogative function."],"pitfall":"Do not expand every 焉 mechanically into 於之.","compare":["yu","ellipsis","question"],"query":"焉"},{"id":"negation","han":"不 · 未 · 無 · 非","title":"Keep different negatives apart","family":"Predication","summary":"不 commonly negates a predicate; 未 often presents something as not yet the case; 無 denies possession or existence; 非 rejects an identification or assertion. Context can refine these broad distinctions.","steps":["Find what is negated.","Decide whether the issue is action, time, existence, or identification.","Check the scope: one phrase or the entire claim."],"pitfall":"Negative words are not freely interchangeable. A modern translation may conceal a meaningful distinction.","compare":["prohibition","fronting","nominal"],"query":"不 · 未 · 無 · 非"},{"id":"prohibition","han":"毋 · 勿 · 無","title":"Recognize a negative directive","family":"Discourse","summary":"毋 and 勿 often express a prohibition or advice not to act. Some texts also use 無 in directive environments. Distinguish a request about conduct from an ordinary statement that something does not happen.","steps":["Identify the implied addressee.","Find the action being discouraged.","Translate the force of the instruction in context."],"pitfall":"The same written 無 can also mean “not have”; syntax and situation matter.","compare":["negation","ellipsis"],"query":"毋 · 勿 · 無"},{"id":"question","han":"何 · 誰 · 孰 · 安","title":"Locate the unknown","family":"Discourse","summary":"Question words can ask about a thing, person, choice, place, reason, or manner. Their syntactic position may differ from modern Chinese. Some questions are arguments rather than requests for information.","steps":["Find the question word and its governing expression.","Ask which constituent an answer would replace.","Check whether the speaker expects an obvious or negative answer."],"pitfall":"English “why” may translate more than one Classical structure. Do not infer the parse from the English question alone.","compare":["fronting","hu"],"query":"何 · 誰 · 孰 · 安"},{"id":"fronting","han":"未之有 · 何以","title":"Notice an object before its verb","family":"Structure","summary":"In certain negative environments a pronominal object precedes the verb. Interrogative objects also occur before their governing verb or preposition. These patterns explain sequences that look reversed to a modern learner.","steps":["Identify the negative or interrogative environment.","Locate the verb or preposition.","Reconstruct its relation to the preceding object."],"pitfall":"These are constrained constructions, not permission to rearrange any Classical sentence.","compare":["negation","zhi-object","question"],"query":"未之有"},{"id":"ze","han":"則","title":"Follow a condition and its consequence","family":"Connection","summary":"則 often introduces a consequence, inference, or contrasting case. An “if” relation may be supplied by the preceding clause even when there is no separate word meaning “if”.","steps":["Find the clause that sets up the situation.","Read the following clause as its consequence or next case.","Check whether the passage instead contrasts two topics."],"pitfall":"則 does not guarantee a real-world causal claim; it can organize an argument.","compare":["conditional","er","gu"],"query":"則"},{"id":"conditional","han":"若 · 如 · 苟","title":"Build a conditional reading","family":"Connection","summary":"若, 如, and 苟 can introduce a supposition or condition. The same graphs have other uses, including comparison. Read the complete two-part structure before deciding.","steps":["Locate the proposed situation.","Find its consequence, sometimes introduced by 則.","Distinguish a condition from “be like” or another lexical use."],"pitfall":"An unmarked initial clause may also function conditionally. Not every 若 means “if”.","compare":["ze","comparison","concessive"],"query":"若 · 如 · 苟"},{"id":"concessive","han":"雖","title":"Keep the concession and the main claim","family":"Connection","summary":"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.","steps":["Bracket the conceded clause.","Locate the claim that survives the concession.","Choose a translation that preserves the contrast."],"pitfall":"Do not force a modern 雖然…但是 template onto every occurrence.","compare":["er","conditional"],"query":"雖"},{"id":"gu","han":"故 · 是以","title":"Follow an explicit inference","family":"Connection","summary":"故 and 是以 often link an earlier statement to a conclusion. 故 also has lexical uses such as a reason or an old circumstance. 是以 can be understood through “because of this”.","steps":["Identify the prior claim being used as a basis.","Locate the conclusion.","Ask whether 故 is a connector or part of a noun phrase."],"pitfall":"A writer’s inference is not evidence that the inference is factually correct.","compare":["yi","ze","parallel"],"query":"故 · 是以"},{"id":"weiyi","han":"以…為…","title":"Read what something is taken or used as","family":"Predication","summary":"以 A 為 B commonly presents A as being used, treated, or regarded as B. The roles of A and B are essential; the construction is more specific than matching two isolated function words.","steps":["Identify A, the item taken or used.","Identify B, its assigned role or characterization.","Use context to distinguish practical use from a judgment."],"pitfall":"The two words may occur in separate clauses; their mere co-occurrence is not a construction.","compare":["yi","wei","causative"],"query":"以"},{"id":"causative","han":"使 · 王 · 衣","title":"Notice a change in argument structure","family":"Predication","summary":"A familiar noun or property word can function as a predicate. Some uses mean making someone be or do something; others describe treating something as having a property. These are interpretations of an actual construction, not arbitrary new definitions.","steps":["Identify the participants and the predicate.","Check whether an object is caused to act or change.","Compare a simple predicative reading before selecting a causative interpretation."],"pitfall":"Do not label every noun used verbally as causative, or infer a pronunciation from the label alone.","compare":["wei","weiyi","ellipsis"],"query":"使"},{"id":"passive","han":"見 · 於 · 為","title":"Identify who undergoes the action","family":"Predication","summary":"A subject may be understood as undergoing an action, sometimes without a dedicated marker. Certain patterns with 見, 於, or 為 make this relation explicit. Each pattern has its own historical distribution.","steps":["Find the action and its affected participant.","Look for an expressed agent or a marked construction.","Keep an unmarked contextual interpretation separate from an overt passive pattern."],"pitfall":"見 often simply means “see”. A substring match is not enough to label a passage passive.","compare":["yu","wei","ellipsis"],"query":"見"},{"id":"comparison","han":"如 · 若 · 於","title":"Identify a comparison and its standard","family":"Predication","summary":"Comparisons can use words meaning “be like”, constructions with a standard after 於, or negative comparisons such as 不如. The compared property may be understood rather than repeated.","steps":["Find the two things compared.","Recover the relevant property from context.","Distinguish similarity from a ranking or a counterfactual condition."],"pitfall":"如 and 若 also occur in conditional contexts.","compare":["conditional","yu","parallel"],"query":"如"},{"id":"topic","han":"者…也","title":"Separate the topic from the comment","family":"Structure","summary":"A sentence may establish what it is about before supplying a comment. 者 or 也 can help mark a topic boundary, but topics can also be unmarked. The topic need not be the grammatical agent.","steps":["Ask what the sentence sets out to discuss.","Locate the comment made about it.","Check whether a pronoun or omitted participant inside the comment refers back to the topic."],"pitfall":"Not every pause is a topic boundary, and punctuation is an editorial layer.","compare":["zhe","nominal","zhi-clause"],"query":"者"},{"id":"ellipsis","han":"∅","title":"Recover what the text leaves unstated","family":"Structure","summary":"Subjects, objects, and other participants can be left unstated when the discourse supplies them. Reading requires explicit hypotheses about those missing relations, especially when a new speaker enters.","steps":["Identify the governing predicate.","List which participants are expressed.","Recover only what the surrounding discourse supports, and keep alternatives when needed."],"pitfall":"Do not add an English pronoun as though its identity were written in the Chinese.","compare":["pronouns","zhi-object","parallel"],"query":"曰"},{"id":"parallel","han":"對讀","title":"Let parallel clauses constrain a reading","family":"Structure","summary":"Repeated structures can reveal constituent boundaries and contrasts in meaning. Parallelism helps test an interpretation, but it does not prove that every repeated graph has exactly the same sense.","steps":["Align the repeated structures.","Mark what stays constant and what changes.","Test whether a proposed parse works for both sides."],"pitfall":"A balanced translation may exaggerate symmetry that the source does not actually have.","compare":["er","comparison","gu"],"query":"不"},{"id":"pronouns","han":"吾 · 我 · 汝 · 子","title":"Track speakers and addressees","family":"Reference","summary":"First- and second-person expressions depend on who is speaking. 子 can be a respectful address as well as a noun; quoted speech may shift reference several times within a passage.","steps":["Mark the boundaries of reported speech.","Assign a speaker and addressee where the text supports them.","Recheck each pronoun when the speaker changes."],"pitfall":"Modern fixed equivalences can conceal differences of register and syntactic distribution.","compare":["qi","ellipsis","zhi-object"],"query":"吾"}],"references":[{"title":"Kanseki Repository · pinned primary text witnesses","url":"https://github.com/kanripo","scope":"Textual evidence. Individual examples link to exact source files and lines."},{"title":"Edwin G. Pulleyblank · Outline of Classical Chinese Grammar","url":"https://www.ubcpress.ca/outline-of-classical-chinese-grammar","scope":"Further study: word order, predication, nominalization, negation and complex sentences. Book content is not reproduced."},{"title":"Robert Eno · Introduction to Literary Chinese, Part I","url":"https://hdl.handle.net/2022/23481","scope":"Further study: an academic primer with annotated readings and exercises. Not imported."},{"title":"Introduction to Classical Chinese · Schonebaum and contributors","url":"https://press.rebus.community/guwen/","scope":"Further study: function words and reading lessons. CC BY-NC-SA material is not imported into this dataset."},{"title":"Thesaurus Linguae Sericae","url":"https://www.hcts.uni-heidelberg.de/en/research/heidelberg-research-architecture/thesaurus-linguae-sericae-tls-han-xue-wen-dian-hanxuewendian","scope":"Further research: contextual historical senses and syntactic analysis. No TLS annotation import in this release."}]}