理

lǐ

HSK 6

理 — lǐ

1. texture; grain (of wood, cloth)

   这块木头的理很清楚。 zhèkuài mùtou de lǐ hěn qīngchǔ — The grain of this piece of wood is very clear.

2. inner essence; intrinsic order; underlying principle

   他研究事物的理。 tā yánjiū shìwù de lǐ — He studies the underlying principles of things.

3. reason; logic; truth

   这件事讲不通道理，没有什么理。 zhèjiàn shì jiǎng bùtōng dàolǐ méiyǒu shénme lǐ — This matter doesn't make sense; there's no reason to it.

4. science; natural science (esp. physics)

   他在大学学理科。 tā zài dàxué xuélǐkē — He studies the sciences at university.

5. to manage; to run (affairs); to handle

   他负责理公司的一些日常事务。 tā fùzé lǐ gōngsī de yīxiē rìchángshìwù — He is responsible for managing some daily affairs of the company.

6. to pay attention to; to attend to; to respond to (e.g., ignore someone: 不理)

   他生气了，故意不理我。 tā shēngqì le gùyì bùlǐ wǒ — He was angry and deliberately ignored me.

7. to put in order; to tidy up; to sort out

   你把桌子上的东西理一下。 nǐ bǎ zhuōzi shàng de dōngxī lǐ yīxià — Please tidy up the things on the table.