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爵 (jué) — (bound form) ancient bronze wine vessel with three legs and a loop handle, used in rituals; (bound form) rank of nobility; peerage

Definition

Bound morpheme with two unrelated historical senses: an ancient three-legged bronze ritual wine vessel, and a rank of nobility (as in 爵士 knight, 公爵 duke, 伯爵 earl). It is never used as a free word.

bound form
ancient bronze wine vessel with three legs and a loop handle, used in ritualsrank of nobilitypeerage

Examples

  • 。
    Tā bèi huáng dì fēng wéi gōng jué.
    He was granted the title of duke by the emperor.
  • 爵。
    Bó wù guǎn lǐ zhǎn chū le yí jiàn shāng dài de qīng tóng jué.
    The museum displayed a Shang-dynasty bronze jue wine vessel.
  • ，。
    Zài fēng jiàn shí dài, jué wèi shì kě yǐ shì xí de.
    In feudal times, noble ranks could be inherited.

Origin

Pictograph
六书liùshū
象形xiàngxíng

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

爵 originally pictured a sparrow-shaped wine vessel, sometimes with a hand holding it. In the modern form, the vessel's parts were reshaped and separated.

Appears in
History

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