DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

理學

简理学 · 繁理學

Mandarin · pinyin lǐ xué#

science

Mandarin · pinyin Lǐ xué#

School of Principle
Neo-Confucian Rationalistic School (from Song to mid-Qing times, c. 1000-1750, typified by the teachings of Cheng Hao 程顥 Chéng Hào, Cheng Yi 程頤 Chéng Yí and Zhu Xi 朱熹 Zhū xī)

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

理: lǐ · reason, logic; manage
學: xué · learning, knowledge; school
学: xué · learning, knowledge; school

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

3–2 · li3 xue2

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

3character links1same-tone record

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.

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.

理學 · find source passages ↗ · 理学 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

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

name

(philosophy) Neo-Confucianism

noun

natural sciences; science

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

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack