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功利 (gōng lì) — (philosophy) utility; (pejorative) pursuit of personal gain; mercenary attitude

Definition

Two senses: in philosophy, 'utility' (as in 功利主义 utilitarianism); in everyday use, a pejorative 'mercenary, out for personal gain.' Unlike 用处 ('usefulness,' neutral) or 益处 ('benefit'), 功利 always carries that self-interested, results-only judgment.

noun
(philosophy) utility(pejorative) pursuit of personal gainmercenary attitude
Easily confused

Examples

  • 功利，。
    Tā zuò rèn hé shì dōu zhī kàn zhòng gōng lì, bú zài hu gǎn qíng.
    He only cares about personal gain in everything he does, not about feelings.
  • 。
    Gōng lì zhǔ yì zhé xué qiáng diào zuì dà duō shù rén de zuì dà xìng fú.
    Utilitarian philosophy emphasizes the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people.
  • 功利，。
    Xiàn zài de shè huì fēng qì tài zhù zhòng gōng lì, hěn duō rén jí gōng jìn lì.
    Current social trends place too much emphasis on utility, and many people are eager for quick success.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

功gōngmerit/achievement
利lìprofit/benefit

功 (merit/achievement) and 利 (profit) together refer to utility or gain-seeking.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
力力lìstrength
Sound part声符shēngfú
工
工gōng功gōng
Same sound today

功 puts 力 (strength) beside 工, which gives the sound gōng and means labour or work.

Open 功 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

利 combines 禾 (grain) and 刀 (knife), showing a knife used to cut grain.

Open 利 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9

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