Chinese

理所當然

/li²¹⁴⁻³⁵ su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ tɑŋ⁵⁵ ɻän³⁵/

to be only right and proper; to be taken as a matter of course; naturally

TOCFL 7
理所当然

Etymology graph

inherited
borrowed
derived
parts
meaning component
sound component
related

React Flow

點擊節點放大 · Click a node to zoom in

Origin

The phrase 理所當然 means to be only right and proper, to be taken as a matter of course, or naturally. According to the MOE Dictionary, it implies that something should be so based on reasoning.

The character 理, meaning to cut and polish jade, is formed with the semantic component 玉 (jade) and the phonetic component 里. The character 所, meaning place or location, combines the semantic component 斤 (a traditional unit of weight) with the phonetic component 戶 (door).

The character 當, meaning to face or to turn towards, uses the semantic component 田 (farmland) and the phonetic component 尚. Finally, 然 is the original form of 燃 (to burn), consisting of the semantic component 火 (fire) and the phonetic component 肰 (dog meat), which itself is composed of the semantic components 肉 (meat) and 犬 (dog).

Confidence: high · written by gemma4:26b, checked statement-by-statement against the sources below.

Lineage

characterChinese理 “to cut and polish jade”
- meaningChinese玉 “jade (originally nephrite, now also including jadeite)”
- soundChinese里 “li (a unit of distance equal to half a kilometre in modern Mainland China)”
  - ideaChinese田 “farmland (Classifier: 塊／块 m c)”
  - ideaChinese土 “earth; soil”
characterChinese所 “place; location”
- soundChinese戶 “door”
- meaningChinese斤 “catty or jin, a traditional unit of weight, equal to 0.5 kilograms”
characterChinese當 “to face; to turn towards”
- soundChinese尚 “still; yet”
  - meaningChinese八 “eight”
  - soundChinese向 “to face”
    - ideaChinese宀 “a type of deep house with walls on all four sides, a roof, a main hall, and back rooms”
    - ideaChinese口 “mouth, especially the lips and internal mouth cavity (Classifier: 把 c)”
characterChinese然 “original form of 燃 (rán, “to burn”)”
- soundChinese肰 “dog meat”
  - meaningChinese肉 “meat; flesh”
  - meaningChinese犬 “dog”
- meaningChinese火 “fire; flame (Classifier: 把 m; 團／团 m)”

Wiktionary etymology text

No etymology text yet. The graph shows what is known from the sources.

Sources

etymagent (local gemma4:26b) — Generated
HSK / TOCFL word lists — Facts (levels)
教育部《國語辭典簡編本》 (Taiwan MOE) — CC BY-ND 3.0 TW
Written form — n/a
Wiktionary (via Wiktextract / kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

Origin

The phrase 理所當然 means to be only right and proper, to be taken as a matter of course, or naturally. According to the MOE Dictionary, it implies that something should be so based on reasoning.

Confidence: high · written by gemma4:26b, checked statement-by-statement against the sources below.

Lineage

characterChinese理 “to cut and polish jade”
- meaningChinese玉 “jade (originally nephrite, now also including jadeite)”
- soundChinese里 “li (a unit of distance equal to half a kilometre in modern Mainland China)”
  - ideaChinese田 “farmland (Classifier: 塊／块 m c)”
  - ideaChinese土 “earth; soil”
characterChinese所 “place; location”
- soundChinese戶 “door”
- meaningChinese斤 “catty or jin, a traditional unit of weight, equal to 0.5 kilograms”
characterChinese當 “to face; to turn towards”
- soundChinese尚 “still; yet”
  - meaningChinese八 “eight”
  - soundChinese向 “to face”
    - ideaChinese宀 “a type of deep house with walls on all four sides, a roof, a main hall, and back rooms”
    - ideaChinese口 “mouth, especially the lips and internal mouth cavity (Classifier: 把 c)”
characterChinese然 “original form of 燃 (rán, “to burn”)”
- soundChinese肰 “dog meat”
  - meaningChinese肉 “meat; flesh”
  - meaningChinese犬 “dog”
- meaningChinese火 “fire; flame (Classifier: 把 m; 團／团 m)”