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(East Asian philosophy, especially Confucianism)li, the underlying ordering principle of the cosmos
Coordinate term:기(氣)(gi, vital force engendering the cosmos)
Usage notes
In the case of this specific word, the 리(ri) pronunciation is common even in South Korea. The reason may be to avoid homophony with other Chinese characters, given the context of East Asian philosophy where single-character Chinese terms are common.
Modern Korean reading of various Chinese characters, when preceded by another character in a compound. When used as the first character of a compound or in isolation, they are pronounced as 이(i).
Following a language reform in the mid-twentieth century, North Koreans always read them as 리(ri) in any position, but this was not standard before the division of Korea.