"사대" meaning in All languages combined

See 사대 on Wiktionary

Noun [Korean]

IPA: [ˈsʰa̠(ː)dɛ] [SK-Standard, Seoul], [ˈsʰa̠(ː)de̞] [SK-Standard, Seoul] Forms: sadae [romanization], 事大 [hanja]
Etymology: Sino-Korean word from 事大, from 事 (“serve”) + 大 (“great [state]”), often attributed to a saying in Mencius (translation by James Legge): ::惟智者為能以小事大。 /惟智者为能以小事大。 ::And it requires a wise [ruler] to be able with a small State to serve a great. Etymology templates: {{etymid|ko|事大}}, {{ko-etym-sino|事|serve|大|great 􂀿state􂁀}} Sino-Korean word from 事大, from 事 (“serve”) + 大 (“great [state]”) Head templates: {{ko-noun|hanja=事大}} 사대 • (sadae) (hanja 事大)
  1. (historical) traditional East Asian states' deferential diplomacy towards the Chinese empire Tags: historical
    Sense id: en-사대-ko-noun-TgC7QqBf Categories (other): Sino-Korean words Disambiguation of Sino-Korean words: 36 41 12 11
  2. (historical) traditional East Asian states' deferential diplomacy towards the Chinese empire
    in particular, Korea's traditional diplomacy towards China, in which the latter was considered the source of Korean political legitimacy
    Tags: historical
    Sense id: en-사대-ko-noun-J7~TcykM Categories (other): Korean links with redundant wikilinks, Korean entries with incorrect language header, Korean terms with long vowels in the first syllable, Korean terms with redundant script codes, Korean terms with redundant transliterations, Sino-Korean words Disambiguation of Korean entries with incorrect language header: 22 41 18 18 Disambiguation of Korean terms with long vowels in the first syllable: 20 41 17 22 Disambiguation of Korean terms with redundant script codes: 25 55 8 12 Disambiguation of Korean terms with redundant transliterations: 22 49 14 14 Disambiguation of Sino-Korean words: 36 41 12 11
  3. (modern, critical) a sycophantic or self-effacing diplomacy towards a stronger nation Tags: modern
    Sense id: en-사대-ko-noun-0K4KrzYs Categories (other): Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries, Sino-Korean words Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 18 18 37 28 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 15 15 39 31 Disambiguation of Sino-Korean words: 36 41 12 11
  4. any situation in which a person or country acts deferentially towards a stronger power
    Sense id: en-사대-ko-noun-FN~WlpH2 Categories (other): Sino-Korean words Disambiguation of Sino-Korean words: 36 41 12 11
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Derived forms: 사대주의 (sadaejuui) (alt: 事大主義)

Inflected forms

{
  "derived": [
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0",
      "alt": "事大主義",
      "roman": "sadaejuui",
      "word": "사대주의"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "ko",
        "2": "事大"
      },
      "expansion": "",
      "name": "etymid"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "事",
        "2": "serve",
        "3": "大",
        "4": "great 􂀿state􂁀"
      },
      "expansion": "Sino-Korean word from 事大, from 事 (“serve”) + 大 (“great [state]”)",
      "name": "ko-etym-sino"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Sino-Korean word from 事大, from 事 (“serve”) + 大 (“great [state]”), often attributed to a saying in Mencius (translation by James Legge):\n::惟智者為能以小事大。 /惟智者为能以小事大。\n::And it requires a wise [ruler] to be able with a small State to serve a great.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "sadae",
      "tags": [
        "romanization"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "事大",
      "tags": [
        "hanja"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "hanja": "事大"
      },
      "expansion": "사대 • (sadae) (hanja 事大)",
      "name": "ko-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "Korean",
  "lang_code": "ko",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "36 41 12 11",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Sino-Korean words",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "traditional East Asian states' deferential diplomacy towards the Chinese empire"
      ],
      "id": "en-사대-ko-noun-TgC7QqBf",
      "links": [
        [
          "traditional",
          "traditional"
        ],
        [
          "East Asia",
          "East Asia"
        ],
        [
          "states",
          "states"
        ],
        [
          "deferential",
          "deferential"
        ],
        [
          "diplomacy",
          "diplomacy"
        ],
        [
          "towards",
          "towards"
        ],
        [
          "Chinese",
          "Chinese"
        ],
        [
          "empire",
          "empire"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(historical) traditional East Asian states' deferential diplomacy towards the Chinese empire"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "historical"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Korean links with redundant wikilinks",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "22 41 18 18",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Korean entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "20 41 17 22",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Korean terms with long vowels in the first syllable",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "25 55 8 12",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Korean terms with redundant script codes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "22 49 14 14",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Korean terms with redundant transliterations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "36 41 12 11",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Sino-Korean words",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_english_offsets": [
            [
              107,
              120
            ]
          ],
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              23,
              25
            ]
          ],
          "english": "Where has Chongzhen of the Great Ming gone? / Again and again I grieve for three centuries of integrity in serving China.",
          "ref": "c. 1644, published in c. 1790, 朝鮮 孝宗 (Hyojong of Korea), 樂學拾零 (Akhak Seumnyeong) [Tidbits of the Musical Sciences]:",
          "roman": "Daemyeong Sungjeong-i eoduireoro gasigeon'go / sambaengnyeon sadae seongsin-eul monnae seulheo hanora",
          "text": "大明 崇禎이 어듸러로 가시건고 / 三百年 事大 誠信을 못ᄂᆡ 슬허 ᄒᆞ노라",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "traditional East Asian states' deferential diplomacy towards the Chinese empire",
        "in particular, Korea's traditional diplomacy towards China, in which the latter was considered the source of Korean political legitimacy"
      ],
      "id": "en-사대-ko-noun-J7~TcykM",
      "links": [
        [
          "traditional",
          "traditional"
        ],
        [
          "East Asia",
          "East Asia"
        ],
        [
          "states",
          "states"
        ],
        [
          "deferential",
          "deferential"
        ],
        [
          "diplomacy",
          "diplomacy"
        ],
        [
          "towards",
          "towards"
        ],
        [
          "Chinese",
          "Chinese"
        ],
        [
          "empire",
          "empire"
        ],
        [
          "Korea",
          "Korea"
        ],
        [
          "toward",
          "toward"
        ],
        [
          "China",
          "China"
        ],
        [
          "latter",
          "latter"
        ],
        [
          "consider",
          "consider"
        ],
        [
          "source",
          "source"
        ],
        [
          "politic",
          "politic"
        ],
        [
          "legitimacy",
          "legitimacy"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(historical) traditional East Asian states' deferential diplomacy towards the Chinese empire",
        "in particular, Korea's traditional diplomacy towards China, in which the latter was considered the source of Korean political legitimacy"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "historical"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "18 18 37 28",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "15 15 39 31",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "36 41 12 11",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Sino-Korean words",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "a sycophantic or self-effacing diplomacy towards a stronger nation"
      ],
      "id": "en-사대-ko-noun-0K4KrzYs",
      "links": [
        [
          "sycophantic",
          "sycophantic"
        ],
        [
          "self-effacing",
          "self-effacing"
        ],
        [
          "diplomacy",
          "diplomacy"
        ],
        [
          "toward",
          "toward"
        ],
        [
          "strong",
          "strong"
        ],
        [
          "nation",
          "nation"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "critical",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(modern, critical) a sycophantic or self-effacing diplomacy towards a stronger nation"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "modern"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "36 41 12 11",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Sino-Korean words",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "any situation in which a person or country acts deferentially towards a stronger power"
      ],
      "id": "en-사대-ko-noun-FN~WlpH2",
      "links": [
        [
          "any",
          "any"
        ],
        [
          "situation",
          "situation"
        ],
        [
          "person",
          "person"
        ],
        [
          "country",
          "country"
        ],
        [
          "deferentially",
          "deferentially"
        ],
        [
          "strong",
          "strong"
        ],
        [
          "power",
          "power"
        ]
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "[ˈsʰa̠(ː)dɛ]",
      "tags": [
        "SK-Standard",
        "Seoul"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "[ˈsʰa̠(ː)de̞]",
      "tags": [
        "SK-Standard",
        "Seoul"
      ]
    },
    {
      "hangeul": "사(ː)대"
    },
    {
      "hangeul": "사(ː)데"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "Mencius"
  ],
  "word": "사대"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "Korean entries with incorrect language header",
    "Korean lemmas",
    "Korean nouns",
    "Korean terms derived from Mencius",
    "Korean terms with IPA pronunciation",
    "Korean terms with long vowels in the first syllable",
    "Korean terms with redundant script codes",
    "Korean terms with redundant transliterations",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries",
    "Sino-Korean words"
  ],
  "derived": [
    {
      "alt": "事大主義",
      "roman": "sadaejuui",
      "word": "사대주의"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "ko",
        "2": "事大"
      },
      "expansion": "",
      "name": "etymid"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "事",
        "2": "serve",
        "3": "大",
        "4": "great 􂀿state􂁀"
      },
      "expansion": "Sino-Korean word from 事大, from 事 (“serve”) + 大 (“great [state]”)",
      "name": "ko-etym-sino"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Sino-Korean word from 事大, from 事 (“serve”) + 大 (“great [state]”), often attributed to a saying in Mencius (translation by James Legge):\n::惟智者為能以小事大。 /惟智者为能以小事大。\n::And it requires a wise [ruler] to be able with a small State to serve a great.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "sadae",
      "tags": [
        "romanization"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "事大",
      "tags": [
        "hanja"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "hanja": "事大"
      },
      "expansion": "사대 • (sadae) (hanja 事大)",
      "name": "ko-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "Korean",
  "lang_code": "ko",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "Korean terms with historical senses"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "traditional East Asian states' deferential diplomacy towards the Chinese empire"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "traditional",
          "traditional"
        ],
        [
          "East Asia",
          "East Asia"
        ],
        [
          "states",
          "states"
        ],
        [
          "deferential",
          "deferential"
        ],
        [
          "diplomacy",
          "diplomacy"
        ],
        [
          "towards",
          "towards"
        ],
        [
          "Chinese",
          "Chinese"
        ],
        [
          "empire",
          "empire"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(historical) traditional East Asian states' deferential diplomacy towards the Chinese empire"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "historical"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "Korean links with redundant wikilinks",
        "Korean terms with historical senses",
        "Korean terms with quotations"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_english_offsets": [
            [
              107,
              120
            ]
          ],
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              23,
              25
            ]
          ],
          "english": "Where has Chongzhen of the Great Ming gone? / Again and again I grieve for three centuries of integrity in serving China.",
          "ref": "c. 1644, published in c. 1790, 朝鮮 孝宗 (Hyojong of Korea), 樂學拾零 (Akhak Seumnyeong) [Tidbits of the Musical Sciences]:",
          "roman": "Daemyeong Sungjeong-i eoduireoro gasigeon'go / sambaengnyeon sadae seongsin-eul monnae seulheo hanora",
          "text": "大明 崇禎이 어듸러로 가시건고 / 三百年 事大 誠信을 못ᄂᆡ 슬허 ᄒᆞ노라",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "traditional East Asian states' deferential diplomacy towards the Chinese empire",
        "in particular, Korea's traditional diplomacy towards China, in which the latter was considered the source of Korean political legitimacy"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "traditional",
          "traditional"
        ],
        [
          "East Asia",
          "East Asia"
        ],
        [
          "states",
          "states"
        ],
        [
          "deferential",
          "deferential"
        ],
        [
          "diplomacy",
          "diplomacy"
        ],
        [
          "towards",
          "towards"
        ],
        [
          "Chinese",
          "Chinese"
        ],
        [
          "empire",
          "empire"
        ],
        [
          "Korea",
          "Korea"
        ],
        [
          "toward",
          "toward"
        ],
        [
          "China",
          "China"
        ],
        [
          "latter",
          "latter"
        ],
        [
          "consider",
          "consider"
        ],
        [
          "source",
          "source"
        ],
        [
          "politic",
          "politic"
        ],
        [
          "legitimacy",
          "legitimacy"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(historical) traditional East Asian states' deferential diplomacy towards the Chinese empire",
        "in particular, Korea's traditional diplomacy towards China, in which the latter was considered the source of Korean political legitimacy"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "historical"
      ]
    },
    {
      "glosses": [
        "a sycophantic or self-effacing diplomacy towards a stronger nation"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "sycophantic",
          "sycophantic"
        ],
        [
          "self-effacing",
          "self-effacing"
        ],
        [
          "diplomacy",
          "diplomacy"
        ],
        [
          "toward",
          "toward"
        ],
        [
          "strong",
          "strong"
        ],
        [
          "nation",
          "nation"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "critical",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(modern, critical) a sycophantic or self-effacing diplomacy towards a stronger nation"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "modern"
      ]
    },
    {
      "glosses": [
        "any situation in which a person or country acts deferentially towards a stronger power"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "any",
          "any"
        ],
        [
          "situation",
          "situation"
        ],
        [
          "person",
          "person"
        ],
        [
          "country",
          "country"
        ],
        [
          "deferentially",
          "deferentially"
        ],
        [
          "strong",
          "strong"
        ],
        [
          "power",
          "power"
        ]
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "[ˈsʰa̠(ː)dɛ]",
      "tags": [
        "SK-Standard",
        "Seoul"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "[ˈsʰa̠(ː)de̞]",
      "tags": [
        "SK-Standard",
        "Seoul"
      ]
    },
    {
      "hangeul": "사(ː)대"
    },
    {
      "hangeul": "사(ː)데"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "Mencius"
  ],
  "word": "사대"
}

Download raw JSONL data for 사대 meaning in All languages combined (4.4kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable All languages combined dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2025-06-16 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2025-06-01 using wiktextract (074e7de and f1c2b61). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.