沛

pèi

abundant, full, copious; sudden

Meaning

Core sense of abundance characterized by fluid motion or saturation rather than static volume. This includes "copious" or "abundant" (specifically regarding water, rain, or lush vegetation) and "sudden" or "torrential" (as in the abrupt onset of a flash flood).

Grammar and usage

  • Adjective: Describing abundance or suddenness.
  • Verb: To gush, pour forth, or overflow; may be used metaphorically for the pouring out of speech or emotion.
  • Proper Noun: A geographic marker, specifically referring to Pei County (common in early imperial and Han texts).

Distinctions

  • Vs. 豐 (fēng): While both denote abundance, 豐 suggests harvest, peak volume, or richness of accumulation; 沛 emphasizes flow, saturation, and dynamic movement.
  • Vs. 澎 (péng) / 溢 (yì): These focus on the specific act of surging or overflowing, whereas 沛 more often describes a general state of being copious.

Translator notes

First determine if the glyph functions as a proper noun (geographic/political). If it is descriptive, prioritize "copious" or "lush," but consider "sudden" if the context involves weather or an abrupt event.

Decontextualized translator aid. This page describes plausible lexical range; it does not choose what the glyph means in a particular passage.