---
title: "Chinese Philosophy Terms: Tao, Confucian Virtues and the Great Thinkers With Pinyin and Sound"
description: "45 Chinese philosophy terms, from 道, 仁 and 无为 to 儒家, 道家, 孔子 and 老子, each with pinyin, its meaning and sound."
canonical: "https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-philosophy-terms"
author: "Mandarin The Wild"
---

Free · 45 terms

# Chinese philosophy terms

[Print as flashcards](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-flashcards?level=mine&words=%E5%93%B2%E5%AD%A6%20%E8%AF%B8%E5%AD%90%E7%99%BE%E5%AE%B6%20%E5%84%92%E5%AE%B6%20%E9%81%93%E5%AE%B6%20%E6%B3%95%E5%AE%B6%20%E5%A2%A8%E5%AE%B6%20%E4%BD%9B%E6%95%99%20%E7%A6%85%20%E5%AD%94%E5%AD%90%20%E8%80%81%E5%AD%90%20%E5%AD%9F%E5%AD%90%20%E5%BA%84%E5%AD%90%20%E5%A2%A8%E5%AD%90%20%E8%8D%80%E5%AD%90%20%E9%9F%A9%E9%9D%9E%E5%AD%90%20%E5%AD%99%E5%AD%90%20%E6%9C%B1%E7%86%B9%20%E7%8E%8B%E9%98%B3%E6%98%8E%20%E9%81%93%20%E5%BE%B7%20%E4%BB%81%20%E4%B9%89%20%E7%A4%BC%20%E6%99%BA%20%E4%BF%A1%20%E5%AD%9D%20%E6%81%95%20%E4%B8%AD%E5%BA%B8%20%E6%97%A0%E4%B8%BA%20%E9%98%B4%E9%98%B3%20%E4%BA%94%E8%A1%8C%20%E6%B0%94%20%E5%A4%A9%E4%BA%BA%E5%90%88%E4%B8%80%20%E5%A4%A9%E5%91%BD%20%E5%A4%AA%E6%9E%81%20%E5%90%9B%E5%AD%90%20%E5%B0%8F%E4%BA%BA%20%E4%BB%81%E4%B9%89%20%E7%A4%BC%E4%B9%89%E5%BB%89%E8%80%BB%20%E4%BF%AE%E8%BA%AB%20%E4%B8%89%E7%BA%B2%E4%BA%94%E5%B8%B8%20%E8%AE%BA%E8%AF%AD%20%E9%81%93%E5%BE%B7%E7%BB%8F%20%E6%98%93%E7%BB%8F%20%E5%AD%99%E5%AD%90%E5%85%B5%E6%B3%95)

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## Schools of thought

zhé哲xué学

philosophy

zhū诸zǐ子bǎi百jiā家

the Hundred Schools of Thought (pre-Qin philosophers)

rú儒jiā家

Confucianism; the Confucian school

dào道jiā家

Taoist school of thought; Taoism

fǎ法jiā家

Legalists (school of thought); Legalism

mò墨jiā家

Mohism; the Mohist school

fó佛jiào教

Buddhism

chán禅

Zen; Chan (Buddhism)

## The thinkers

kǒng孔zǐ子

Confucius (551-479 BC)

lǎo老zǐ子

Laozi (ancient Taoist philosopher)

mèng孟zǐ子

Mencius (Confucian philosopher)

zhuāng庄zǐ子

Zhuangzi (Taoist philosopher of the Warring States period, and the book named after him)

mò墨zǐ子

Mozi (philosopher of the Warring States, founder of Mohism)

xún荀zǐ子

Xunzi (Confucian philosopher, c. 310-235 BC)

hán韩fēi非zǐ子

Han Feizi (Legalist philosopher, and the book named after him)

sūn孙zǐ子

Sunzi (author of The Art of War)

zhū朱xī熹

Zhu Xi (Song dynasty Neo-Confucian philosopher)

wáng王yáng阳míng明

Wang Yangming (1472-1529), Ming dynasty Neo-Confucian philosopher

## The big ideas

dào道

Tao (the Way in Taoism)

dé德

virtue; morality

rén仁

benevolence; humaneness

yì义

justice; righteousness

lǐ礼

ceremony; rite

zhì智

wisdom; intelligence

xìn信

trustworthy; true to one's word

xiào孝

filial piety; filial

shù恕

forbearance; reciprocity (Confucian virtue)

zhōng中yōng庸

the golden mean (Confucian doctrine)

wú无wéi为

inaction; doing nothing (Taoist ideal)

yīn阴yáng阳

yin and yang

wǔ五xíng行

the five elements (metal, wood, water, fire, earth)

qì气

qi (vital energy)

tiān天rén人hé合yī一

unity of heaven and humanity

tiān天mìng命

mandate of heaven

tài太jí极

Taiji; the Supreme Ultimate (in Chinese philosophy)

## The good person

jūn君zǐ子

gentleman; person of noble character

xiǎo小rén人

mean person; villain

rén仁yì义

benevolence and righteousness

lǐ礼yì义lián廉chǐ耻

propriety, righteousness, honesty and sense of shame

xiū修shēn身

to cultivate one's moral character

sān三gāng纲wǔ五cháng常

the three cardinal guides and five constant virtues (Confucian ethics)

## The classics

lún论yǔ语

The Analects (of Confucius)

dào道dé德jīng经

Tao Te Ching (classic text attributed to Laozi)

yì易jīng经

I Ching; Book of Changes

sūn孙zǐ子bīng兵fǎ法

The Art of War (by Sunzi)

## What is the Tao?

道 (dào, Tao), the Way: the order of the world in Taoism, and the right way to live for Confucius. It is also the three-letter answer to the crossword clue “Chinese philosophy”.

## What are the five Confucian virtues?

The five constants: 仁 (rén, benevolence), 义 (yì, justice), 礼 (lǐ, propriety), 智 (zhì, wisdom) and 信 (xìn, trustworthiness).

## What does 无为 mean?

无为 (wúwéi) is often translated as inaction, but it means acting without forcing, the way water finds its course. It is a central idea of 道德经 (dàodéjīng, Tao Te Ching).

## Is Taoism 道家 or 道教?

Both. 道家 (dàojiā) is the school of thought of Laozi and Zhuangzi, and 道教 (dàojiào) the religion with its temples and priests. Confucianism is 儒家 (rújiā).

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## More on Chinese thought

- [Famous Chinese quotes](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-quotes)
- [Chinese idioms](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-idioms)
- [Names from Chinese mythology](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-mythology-names)
- [The Chinese dynasties](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-dynasties)

Terms, pinyin and meanings from our own dictionary.