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本體

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Mandarin · pinyin běn tǐ

main part
torso
the thing in itself
noumenon (object of purely intellectual perception according to Kant)

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Characters in this entry

本: běn · root, origin, source; basis
體: tǐ · body; group, class, body, unit
体: tǐ · body; group, class, body, unit; inferior

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

3–3 · ben3 ti3

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Rime Cantonese 粵拼

bun2 tai2

Cantonese word readings for 本體. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

noun

(philosophy) thing-in-itself; noumenon
main part; substance

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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