英文翻译: 曾子曰: "吾日三省吾身…”
Source: Zhihu
(prepared by: alexcwlin; edited by: Adam Lam)

Question:

could u please teach me how to translate曾子曰:"吾日三省吾身:为人谋而不忠乎?与朋友交而不信乎?传不习乎?"

alexcwlin:

Zeng Zi stated: “Several times a day, I go through much soul-searching and ask myself: “Have I done my best in serving others? Have I been honorable in dealing with friends? Have I reviewed what I’ve been taught?”

Question:

But why here use the word " honorable "? 信 means 诚实，真心诚意，I don't quite understand "honorable" here. And what about " sincere"? Can it be used here?

alexcwlin:

Check your dictionary. One of the meaning of “honor” as a Verb is “keep your promise”, which seems to me is what the word “信” is all about between friends.

Although the Adjective “honorable”, which derives from “honor”, has a broader meaning adhering to moral and ethical principles (which include all those good virtues such as “morality, honesty, fairness, equality, dignity, diversity, individual rights, etc.”), nevertheless it would include the trait of “keeping promises”.

Sure you could use the word “sincere” in this context, but it seems to have a narrow meaning.

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