天下

See All under Heaven.

天下

1. (figuratively) the world; everything under the sky; all under heaven

   • 天下莫大於秋豪之末，而大山為小；莫壽於殤子，而彭祖為夭。天地與我並存，而萬物與我為一。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     天下莫大于秋豪之末，而大山为小；莫寿于殇子，而彭祖为夭。天地与我并存，而万物与我为一。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: c. 369 BCE – 286 BCE, 莊子 (Zhuangzi), 齊物論 (The Identity of Contraries)

     Tiānxià mò dàyú qiūháo zhī mò, ér dàshān wéi xiǎo; mò shòuyú shāngzǐ, ér Péngzǔ wéi yāo. Tiāndì yǔ wǒ bìngcún, ér wànwù yǔ wǒ wèi yī. [Pinyin]

     There is nothing under the canopy of heaven greater than the tip of an autumn spikelet. A vast mountain is a small thing. Neither is there any age greater than that of a child cut off in infancy. P'êng Tsu himself died young. The universe and I came into being together; and I, and everything therein, are One.

   • 奴才替天下百姓感激皇太后恩典！ [MSC, trad. and simp.]

     From: The Firmament of the Pleiades

     Núcái tì tiānxià bǎixìng gǎnjī huángtàihòu ēndiǎn! [Pinyin]

     I, on behalf of the people throughout the world, [hereby] express my gratitude for the kindness of the empress dowager!

2. (lofty) China; the Chinese nation
3. (figuratively) state power; domination

• (the world): (Min Nan) 天跤下

• → Manchu: ᠠᠪᡴᠠᡳ
  ᡶᡝᠵᡝᡵᡤᡳ (abkai fejergi) (calque)

From Middle Chinese 天下 (MC tʰen ɦˠa^X, “heaven + under”). The kan'on, so likely a later borrowing.[1]

• On’yomi: Kan’on
  • (Tokyo) て​んか [téꜜǹkà] (Atamadaka – [1])[2][3][4]
  • IPA^(key): [tẽ̞ŋka̠]

天下 (hiragana てんか, rōmaji tenka)

1. the whole world, the earth
2. the whole country, all of Japan
3. the government of Japan
4. power, control over the government
5. (historical, Edo period) the shogun
6. (card games) in traditional Japanese card games, one of the strong cards known as 蠣 (aza)
7. short for 天下一 (tenka ichi): the best in the world (often used attributively with the particle の (no))

   天 (てん)下 (か)の横 (よこ)綱 (づな)

   tenka no yokozuna

   the best yokozuna in the world

From Middle Chinese 天下 (MC tʰen ɦˠa^X, “heaven + under”). The go'on, so likely the earlier borrowing.[1]

Appears with this reading in the Kagerō Nikki, dating to roughly 974 CE.[2] Superseded in modern Japanese by tenka above.

• On’yomi: Goon
  • IPA^(key): [tẽ̞ŋɡe̞]

天下 (hiragana てんげ, rōmaji tenge)

1. (archaic, possibly obsolete) the world, the earth

• 天上

• 地上

天下 • (cheonha) (hangeul 천하)

1. Hanja form^? of 천하 (“world, earth; China”).

天下

1. Hán tự form of thiên hạ (“world”).