排

排 is a phono-semantic compound consisting of:

手 (손 수) — the semantic element, meaning “hand,” indicating the physical act of pushing.

非 (아닐 비) — the phonetic element, providing pronunciation pái and implying opposition or negation.

Thus, the literal sense was “to push aside with the hand”, from which the figurative sense “to reject, to exclude” naturally arose.

Later, through the metaphor of arranging objects by pushing or aligning them, 排 acquired the sense of “to set in order” or “to line up.”

排列 (배렬) — to arrange, to line up

排除 (배제) — to eliminate, to remove

排隊 (배대) — to stand in line, queue

排氣 (배기) — exhaust, vent gas

排斥 (배척) — to reject, to repel

排場 (배장) — display, ostentation, grandeur of setting

1. Physical and Social Motion

In ancient Chinese thought, 排 embodies both force and order — the physical act of pushing also serves as a metaphor for organizing society and maintaining boundaries.

To “排陣” (arrange battle formations) or “排班” (assign ranks) implied discipline and structure, not mere expulsion.

2. Exclusion and Ethics

In Confucian moral usage, 排 could express moral rejection — 排惡就善 (“to drive away evil and move toward good”).

Thus, it carried not only physical but also ethical connotations, where to “push away” meant to purify or refine behavior.

3. Modern Contexts

In everyday Chinese and Korean, 排 retains both its literal and extended senses:

排隊 (“to queue”) represents social order and patience.

排斥 (“to reject”) evokes exclusion or intolerance.

排列組合 (“permutation and combination”) is used in mathematics and logic.

This evolution from a tangible action (pushing by hand) to abstract ordering (structuring, regulating, excluding) reflects the dynamic interplay between movement and hierarchy in East Asian culture.