经传 (jīng zhuàn) — the Confucian classics and their commentaries

Definition

Literary term for the Confucian classics (经) together with the commentaries explaining them (传). Used almost only in scholarly or classical contexts — not everyday vocabulary.

noun
the Confucian classics and their commentaries

Examples

  • 经传。
    Tā cóng xiǎo jiù kāi shǐ xué xí jīng zhuàn.
    He started studying the classics and their commentaries from a young age.
  • 经传。
    Zhè xiē guān diǎn zài jīng zhuàn zhōng dū yǒu jì zǎi.
    These viewpoints are recorded in the classics and commentaries.
  • 经传。
    Yán jiū jīng zhuàn xū yào shēn hòu de gǔ wén gōng dǐ.
    Studying the classics and commentaries requires a deep foundation in classical Chinese.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

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

经jīngclassics
传chuáncommentaries

经 means classics and 传 means commentaries, so together they refer to both the classics and their explanatory texts.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 經; 经 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糹Written in full as糸mìsilk; thread
Sound part声符shēngfú
巠
巠jīng經jīng
Same sound today

The traditional form 經 combines 糹 (silk; thread) with 巠, which gives the sound.

Open 经 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 傳; 传 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
人人rénman
Sound part声符shēngfú
專
專zhuān傳chuán
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 傳 puts 人 (man) beside 專, which gives the sound; the simplified 传 is a later shorthand, and its parts are not the historical ones.

Open 传 →

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