道家 (Dào jiā) — the Daoist school of thought (philosophical tradition associated with Laozi and Zhuangzi); Daoism (the Chinese philosophical and religious tradition)

Definition

Refers specifically to the philosophical school of Laozi and Zhuangzi, emphasizing following nature (自然). Often translated 'Daoism,' which more broadly covers the later religious tradition as well.

noun
the Daoist school of thought (philosophical tradition associated with Laozi and Zhuangzi)Daoism (the Chinese philosophical and religious tradition)
Easily confused

Examples

  • 道家。
    Dào jiā De sī xiǎng duì zhōng guó wén huà yǐng xiǎng hěn dà.
    Daoist thought has a great influence on Chinese culture.
  • 道家。
    Tā yán jiū Dào jiā zhé xué yǐ jīng èr shí duō nián le.
    He has been studying Daoist philosophy for over twenty years.
  • 道家，。
    Dào jiā Zhǔ zhāng shùn yìng zì rán, zhuī qiú nèi xīn píng jìng.
    Daoism advocates following nature and seeking inner peace.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

道dàoDao
家jiāschool

道 is the Dao and 家 means school, so 道家 is the school of the Dao.

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
行行xíngstreet
止止zhǐfoot
Sound part声符shēngfú
𩠐
首shǒu道dào
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

Early 道 showed a street 行, a foot 止, and a part written 首 or 𩠐; the right part of 行 later disappeared.

Open 道 →

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
宀宀miánroof
Sound part声符shēngfú
𢑓
𢑓𢑓家jiā
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The early drawing of 家 showed a roof 宀 over a male-pig sign 𢑓 that gave the pronunciation; the lower part later changed shape.

Open 家 →

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