Thesaurus Mini Dictionary: New Edition (Cihai Edition)

Author: Fan Xiao
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-07-01
Features: Synonyms refer to words that have the same or similar meanings. There are a large number of synonyms in modern Chinese, which is a very important factor contributing to the richness of the vocabulary. Among synonyms, some have identical meanings and are called absolute synonyms or complete synonyms. These are mostly nouns, such as "daytime/daylight" and "descendants/youngsters." Due to their nearly identical meanings, such synonyms are often not included or included minimally in general synonym dictionaries. Most synonyms are verbs or adjectives, and they belong to a category of similar meanings. In terms of morphological form, some have entirely different morphemes, such as "beautiful/beautiful," "roar/howl," and "path/road." Others have one identical and one different morpheme, such as "defend/ward off," "implement/execute," "twinkle/shine," and "dispose/process."
Synonyms arise from changes or developments in social production and daily life. People create a large number of synonyms to reflect reality more finely, accurately, flexibly, and vividly, to convey emotions, and to exchange ideas. The existence of synonyms is a result of long-term development in human thought and a sign of rich vocabulary. Additionally, the appropriate use of synonyms can make expression more vivid, accurate, and flexible, avoiding monotony or repetition of words, thereby enhancing the expressive power of language.
In language teaching, synonyms are often analyzed for their semantic differences. The analysis of synonyms generally starts from the semantic nature and scope of the words, examining differences in semantic weight, emotional connotation, scope, level of generality, and target audience. It can also be based on usage, analyzing collocations, parts of speech, and syntactic functions. Additionally, the stylistic features of words should be considered. It is also necessary to pay attention to the cross-relationships in meaning between certain words and other polysemes.
Differences in semantic weight refer to variations in the intensity of meaning among related synonyms. For example, "beg" carries a heavier and more solemn connotation than "request"; "appear" emphasizes "emergence," while "present" emphasizes being placed before the eyes. The scope of meaning can be broad or narrow, such as "publish" having a broader scope than "enact"; "superior" having a wider scope than "excellent/Outstanding"; "plan" having a broader meaning than "plan"; "praise" having a broader applicability than "honor"; "frontier" referring to a large area, "border" to a line-like zone, and "boundary" to a dividing point.
Different collocations reflect grammatical differences in words. For example, "fulfill" refers to realizing something through action, involving objects like "plans, contracts, schemes"; "execute" refers to implementation, involving objects like "policies, laws, plans, commands"; "suitable" often collocates with "personality, characteristics, tastes, needs"; and "conform" often collocates with "interests, wishes, principles, standards, regulations, spirit." Collocations also differ in parts of speech, such as "obstruct" (a verb) can take a direct object like "obstruct traffic," while "obstacle" (a noun) can be the object of a verb like "create obstacles."
Many synonyms have emotional connotations. People often carry different attitudes and emotions when evaluating things or expressing feelings, which results in words having positive, negative, neutral, colloquial, or formal connotations. For example, "instigate" is negative, while "motivate" is neutral; "achievement" is positive, while "consequence" is negative; "result" is neutral. "Care" and "concern" have different target audiences; "proud," "arrogant," and "proud" have different connotations. Additionally, connotations include regional, rhetorical, and stylistic features.
Many synonyms form synonym clusters, where one word corresponds to multiple or multiple correspond to one or more. They differ in semantic alignment, cross-relationships, and contexts of application, scope, collocations, and restrictions. For example, "loss, loss, loss, loss"; "detailed, careful, delicate, refined"; "beg, request, beg, demand"; and "praise, honor, praise."
This dictionary includes over 4,200 modern Chinese synonym entries. When selecting entries, the compilers have paid special attention to minimizing the inclusion of nouns with identical synonym relationships. Some idioms also have synonym relationships, but this dictionary does not include four-character synonymous idioms. Words often have polysemy, and the entries included in this dictionary only cover those with corresponding synonyms. Entries without corresponding synonyms are not included. For example, "join" has the meaning of "adding something in, mixing something in," as in "add a little salt," but this meaning does not have a corresponding synonym. Therefore, the dictionary does not include this meaning and only includes "join in, become a member of," as in "join the drama club," with the corresponding synonym being "join," as in "join the general meeting."
This dictionary places great emphasis on analyzing semantic differences and applicability features. When distinguishing meanings, it often uses morphological analysis methods to help readers achieve a more accurate understanding and practical application. The analysis provides brief explanations of the stylistic features, emotional connotations, collocations with other words, or applicability scope.