Glossary of Tai Chi Chuan Terms A-Z
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1. Cai 採: A plucking or uprooting force; v. to pluck or grab, pick to accomplish a sudden grip on the adversary.
2. Cannon Right in Front: Dang Tou Pao 當頭炮
3. Carry Sword to the Right: 向右平带 (xiàng yòu píng dài)
4. Cat Stance 貓步: Cat Stance –It places virtually all the body weight on the back leg. The name derives from it’s resemblence to a cat about to pounce or spring.
5. Cchuan zhang xia shi 穿掌下勢 (chuān zhǎng xià shì): Thread palm and push down
6. Ce ti tui 側踢腿: Side kick
7. Ch’en Shih TCC Chen陳式太極拳: the earliest known branch to contain forms & methods recognized as Taijiquan, characterized by ‘inner coiling’ movement & abrupt expressions of power.
8. Ch’i 氣: breath or breath energy; vital energy; life force; Internal energy; intrinsic energy; Same as Qi, or ki (Japanese), prana (Sanskrit), pneuma (Greek), spiritus (Latin), élan vitale (French)
9. Ch’i hai 氣海: Sea of ch’i or energy ocean; acupuncture term that corresponds with the martial term tan t’ien
10. Ch’i kung 氣功: Same as qi gong; vital energy work; working with the qi; cultivating ch’i; exercise or work of the internal energy, having static and moving postures; The science of cultivating the body's vital internal energy (Qi) involving the coordination of different breathing patterns with various physical postures and motions of the body (exercises).
11. Chai 採: Pluck, same as Cai, a technique for unbalancing the opponent or pulling him into an exposed position.
12. Chan 禪 (Chán): Chinese reading of Zen, meaning Meditation.
13. Chan 纏 (Chán): Coiling, to wrap, to surround; entangle, envelop; to wind into rings or spirals; to roll or twist into a shape resembling a coil; to move in a circular or spiral course; to form or lie in a coil
14. Chán Dìng 禪定(Chán Dìng):concentration, one of the six perfections (Liù Dù, 六度, in the Great Vehicle, mahāyāna, Dà Shéng, 大乘).
15. Chan Si Gong 纏絲功: Reeling silk skill; Silk reeling exercises; Same as Chan Si Gung, a central part of Chen Style Xinyi Hunyuán Taijiquan.
16. Chan si jing纏絲勁 (chán sī jìn): silk reeling energy ; Silk-Reeling Practice; Spiral-Power Practice; A set of exercises peculiar to Chen-style Taijiquan used to develop the coordination and strength that form the basis of internal strength. It is named after the practice of slowly harvesting silk from the silk worm. It may also be known as spiraling power. The movement and path of internal energy, expressed in a coiling nature of the body.
17. Chan Si 纏絲(chán sī ) : Reeling Silk, the name of a pushing hands technique/concept linked with gyrating arms.
18. Chan Tou 纏頭 (Chán Tóu): Broadsword Twining
19. Chan Zhu纏住 (Chán Zhù): encumber, entangle, embrace.
20. Chang Chuan 長拳: Long Boxing, an alternative name for Tai Chi Chuan as well as the name given to a hard style boxing form.
21. Chang qiang 長強 (cháng qiáng): An acupoint belonging to the Governor vessel.
22. Chang, San-Feng 張三豐: Legendary martial arts master and great taoist philospher, credited with founding Tai Chi Chuan, one of the three internal systems of chinese boxing.
23. Chanrao 纏繞: twining; to coil about; to stretch or move in a sinuous manner
24. Chao tian deng朝天燈: Raise a lamp toward heaven; Oil lamp facing heaven.
25. Chao yang jian朝陽劍: Sword paying homage to the sun.; Sword illuminated by the sun.
26. Che Bu Fan Ji 撤步反擊 (chè bù fǎnjí): Step Back to Strike
27. Chen 沉 (chén): to sink the ch’i and the heart/mind to the tan t’ien; to become more stable by emptying the strength from your upper torso into your legs , or use the sabre to press down on the opponent's weapon or body; adj. heavy, weighty, deep.
28. Chen Family Style Taijiquan: It refers to the taijiquan practiced within the Chen Family members of Chen Jiagou, Wen County, Henan Province, China. People outside of the family who directly learned this style from Chen Family members can only use the term “Chen Style Taijiquan”.
29. Chen Fu沉浮: Float Up and Float Down (U&D) In the float down movement, the hand falls like a feather or like a stone according to the particular movement. In the float-up movement, the hand moves like a wooden float in a rising ocean wave; the hand floats up rather than being raised up by force.
30. Chen Jia Taijiquan 陳家太極拳: Same as Chen Family Style Taijiquan, which is believed to start between 300 and 400 years old, and is widely acknowledged to be the ancestor of the other major styles of Taijiquan. Chen style is popularly characterized by low stances, overtly visible coiling and distinctive power releases or fajing.
31. Chen Jian Zhui Zhou 沉肩垂肘: Sinking Of Shoulders And Elbows; Keep your shoulder in a natural, relaxed position,and also keep the elbows down, otherwise you will not be able to keep your shoulders relaxed and move your body with ease.
32. Chen shi taiji quan tushuo陳氏太極拳圖說 (Chén shì tàijí quán túshuō): Chen Family Taijiquan Illustrated and Explained
33. Chen Style Tai Chi : the oldest of the tai chi families, developed by Chen Wangting (1580 - 1660), which is the oldest and is the parent form of the five main Taijiquan Styles. It originated in the Chen Villiage (Chenjiagou) in Henan Province. Chen style is characterized by low stances, overtly visible coiling and distinctive power releases or fa-jing.
34. Chen Zhou沉肘 (chén zhǒu): Sink the elbows
35. Chen, Fake (陳發科1887–1957) : 17th Generation Grand Master of Chen Family Taijiquan. Accredited for teaching the Chen Style Taijiquan to the outside of the Chen Village in 1928 when he moved to Beijing to teach.
36. Cheng Man-ch'ing 鄭曼青: Professor Cheng Man-Ch’ing was a recognized master of five “excellences” -- calligraphy, medicine, painting, poetry and tai chi chuan. After his studies with tai chi master Yang Cheng-Fu, Professor Cheng modified the 35-40 minute form to a shorter, 10-minute sequence, known as the Yang style Short Form.
37. Cheng承 (chéng ): Connecting, from taiji to yin yang
38. Chenjiagou 陳家溝: Chen Village, village where Chen style taiji originated
39. Chi Kung 氣功: Same as Qigong; energy work, including an exercises that are meant to develop qi in the human body.
40. Chi Sau黐手: Sticky Hands, Quick Hands; A two-person exercise that teaches the student how to stick to their opponent. There are three Chi Sau exercises taught at Dragon Studios: Sticky Touch, where the students try to softly touch their opponent and avoid their opponent's touch; Sticky push, where the students attempt to execute a simple push while staying attached to their opponent; Sticky strike, where the students attempt to gently strike their opponent while being adheared.
41. Chi 持: keep the weight to yourself. If your push hands opponent drops his arms abruptly, you remain motionless because you are not resting your weight on him and the weight of your hands and body remains on your own root.
42. Chi 擠 (jǐ): Same as Ji; A pressing or squeezing offset in a direction away from the body, usually done with the back of the hand or outside edge of the forearm.
43. Chien 劍: Same as Jian; Narrow blade straight-sword, called,‘King of short weapons’.
44. Chin Na 擒拿: Chinese art of seizing and grappling, identified as a type of wrestling but much more sophisitated. Great knowledge of anatomy is required by its practioners before the techniques can be successfully applied.
45. Chin Pu 進步 ( jìn bù): Forward step.
46. Chin 勁: Same as Jin (or jing); Energetic Power, a combination of muscular strength and qi.
47. Chinese martial arts: Arts including boxing, Taiji forms or taolu, kickboxing and mixed martial arts.
48. Ching 經: Classic or Book
49. Chong 重 (Chóng): to repeat, to superimpose; again
50. Chong重 (Zhòng): weight, pressure; heavy, considerable.
51. Chou 抽: To draw forth e.g. an upward diversion with a sword using a whipping action.
52. Chou Kao肘 (zhǒu kao): To strike or push with the elbow; Elbow Strike; Elbow Stroke, or just plain Elbow.
53. Chu Fa 觸發 (Chù Fā): to provoke, to excite; trigger.
54. Chuai 踹: Stamp foot, kick with heel
55. Chuan Di Long拳地龍: The Dragon Through the Ground.
56. Chuan Fa 拳法: Same as Quan Fa, Chinese term meaning Way of the Fist.
57. Chuan Ren傳人: LH or Legacy Holder--A group of the most senior teachers in a school who were charged with being ultimately responsible for upholding and sustaining the teachings that were passed to them by the founder.
58. Chuan xin zhou 穿心肘: Elbow Through The Heart
59. Chuan 穿: Thrust
60. Chuan 拳: Same as Quan; Fist or style of boxing, most often used to identify a fighting style. e.g. Taijiquan, BaGuaquan, etc.
61. Chui 垂 (Chuí): to hang, to let hang, to lean
62. Chung Ting 中定 (zhōng ding): Same as Zhong Ding; central equilibrium; The central position, balance, equilibrium; centrally balanced and firmly rooted, not just the physical center, but a condition which is expected to be present at all times in the first four steps as well, associated with the concept of rooting (the stability said to be achieved by a correctly aligned, thoroughly relaxed body as a result of correct Tai Chi training).
63. Ci 刺: To stab/pierce e.g. stabbing with a sabre.
64. Circle Sword Horizontally: Xuan Zhuan Pin Mo旋轉平抹 (xuánzhuǎn píng mǒ)
65. Clearly distinguish between empty and solid: Fen Qin Xu shi分清虛實 (fēnqīng xūshí)
66. Close Taiji Form: Tai Ji Shou Si 太極收勢
67. Closing Posture: Shou Shi Huan Yuan收式還原 (Shōu shì Huán yuan)
68. Closing: Shou Shi收勢 (Shōushì): Closing of Tai Chi
69. Cloud Built Hands: 雲手(Yúnshǒu)
70. Cloud Hands: Yun Shou 雲手(Yúnshǒu)
71. Commencing: 起勢 (Qǐshì, )-- Preparation, Beginning
72. Confucianism: (In Mandarin Ru儒) A philosophical system founded on the teachings of the Chinese sage Confucius.
73. Confucius孔夫子: A Chinese sage who lived from 551-479 BC and founded Confucianism.
74. Cover hands and punch: Yanshou Gongchui掩手肱捶 (yǎn shǒu gōng chuí)
75. Cross Hands: Shizishou 十字手 (Shízìshǒu)
76. Cross Kick: Shi Zi Tui十字腿 (Shí zì tuǐ)
77. Cross Slant Flying Posture: Heng Xie Fei Shi 橫斜飛勢
78. Cunjing 寸勁: One-inch punch
79. Cut in Bow Stance: Gong Bu Gua Pi弓步挂劈 (gōng bù guà pī)
80. Cut with Armswing in Empty Stance: Xu Bu Lun Pi 虚步掄劈
