Te

Keywords: Go term

Chinese: 手 (shou3)
Japanese: 手 (te)
Korean: -

The Japanese word te means move in the go context. It is also found in compounds such as

te ari (手有) -
fuujite - sealed move
gote - move opponent doesn't have to answer
hamete - joseki trap
honte - sound, solid move
kono itte - the only move
nakade - inside move (to kill a group)
sente - move opponent has to answer
shinte - new move
shobute - do or die move
teai - handicap
teban - whose move it is
tedomari - last move
te-ire - adding a move inside
temodori - going back to patch up
tejun - move order
tenuki - move elsewhere
tesuji - skillful tactical move
tetsuki - striking of a stone
tewari - move order analysis

The on-yomi (Chinese reading) is shu, found in compounds such as

shudan - classic name for game of go, "hand talk"
akushu - bad move
kyoushu? - strong move
koushu? - good move
myoshu - superb move

Te can also have the nuance of "a move which works", as found in Japanese constructions such as te ni naru.

In the compounds uwate and shitate (lit. "upper-hand" and "lower-hand"), the reference is to a stronger or weaker player, based on another meaning of te as person. See /discussion.

In everyday Japanese, te means hand.

An alternative to te in the sense of "move" is chaku (着), used only in compounds such as:

緩着 (kanchaku, slack move)
着手 (chakushu, move)
敗着 (haichaku, losing move)
第一着 (dai-itchaku, first move)
着点 (chakuten, point played)
妙着 (myouchaku, see myoshu)
勝着 (shouchaku, winning move)

In Japanese, there are a number of adjectives from the everyday language commonly applied to the word te. These words may provide helpful hints in understanding the semantic range commonly attributed to moves in that culture.

azayaka-na: flashy (tesuji)
atsui: thick
ayashii: dubious
hageshii: violent
karai: stingy
katai: tight
kibishii: severe
nurui: lukewarm
shibui: sober, restrained
shibutoi: stubborn
shitsukoi: obnoxious
surudoi: sharp
tsuyoi: strong
usui: thin