《里仁》 Passage 4.10

the Master said

• 子 Master; honorific title for Confucius
• 曰 said, spoke

exemplary person, gentleman, superior man

• 君 lord, ruler; 君子 is literally a lord's son
• 子 son; 君子 is literally a lord's son, one of the ruling class, which the Analects makes a term of character

topic-marking frame: as for..., with regard to, in relation to

• 之 subordinating particle marking the topic of what follows
• 於 preposition: with regard to, in relation to
• 也 particle marking a topicalized pause, roughly 'as for...'

之...也 wraps 於 + object, topicalizing the gentleman's relation to what follows; the pause particle 也 itself is never rendered as a separate word.

the world, all under heaven

• 天 heaven, sky
• 下 below, under

not fixed in favor of, no predisposition for

• 無 not, without, lacking
• 適 to be favorably disposed toward, to be for
• 也 clause-final particle marking assertion

適 is read dí here. 朱熹 glosses 適 as 專主, fixed for, and 莫 as 不肯, refusing, the reading most translators follow; 皇侃 and 邢昺 take the pair as 厚 and 薄, partiality and coldness toward people; 楊伯峻 as 可 and 不可.

not fixed against, no predisposition against

• 無 not, without, lacking
• 莫 to be against, to disfavor
• 也 clause-final particle marking assertion

parallel to 無適也; 莫 here means 'to be against, disapprove' rather than the generic 'not, none'.

what is right, righteousness

Ames & Rosemont and Peimin Ni deliberately render 義 as situational 'appropriateness' rather than fixed 'rightness', reflecting a real interpretive split.

to side with, align oneself with, associate with

• 之 resumptive particle marking a fronted object
• 與 with, together with
• 比 to associate with, align oneself with, side with

比 is read bì, to side with (朱熹: 從也), not bǐ. 之 marks 義 as the object fronted before 與比, so 義之與比 is 與義比, to side with what is right.