modern ABC Chinese-English Comprehensive Dictionary, which enters xì "grain; animal feed; make a present of food", and a qì entry with seven translation equivalents for the noun, two for bound morphemes, and three equivalents for the verb. n. ① air; gas ② smell ③ spirit; vigor; morale ④ vital/material energy (in Ch[inese] metaphysics) ⑤ tone; atmosphere; attitude ⑥ anger ⑦ breath; respiration b.f. ① weather tiānqì ② [linguistics] aspiration sòngqì v. ① anger ② get angry ③ bully; insult. English borrowing Qi was an early Chinese loanword in English. It was romanized as k'i in Church Romanization in the early-19th century, as ch'i in Wade–Giles in the mid-19th century (sometimes misspelled chi omitting the apostrophe), and as qi in Pinyin in the mid-20th century. The Oxford English Dictionary entry for qi gives the pronunciation as , the etymology from Chinese qì "air; breath", and a definition of "The physical life-force postulated by certain Chinese philosophers; the material principle." It also gives eight usage examples, with the first recorded example of k'í in 1850 (The Chinese Repository), of ch'i in 1917 (The Encyclopaedia Sinica), and qi in 1971 (Felix Mann's Acupuncture) The word qi is very frequently used in word games—such as Scrabble—due to containing a letter Q without a letter U. Concept References to concepts analogous to qi are found in many Asian belief systems. Philosophical conceptions of qi from the earliest records of Chinese philosophy (5th century BCE) correspond to Western notions of humours and to the ancient Hindu yogic concept of prana. An early form of qi comes from the writings of the Chinese philosopher Mencius (4th century BCE). The ancient Chinese described qi as "life force". They believed it permeated everything and linked their surroundings together. Qi was also linked to the flow of energy around and through the body, forming a cohesive functioning unit. By understanding the rhythm and flow of qi, they believed they could guide exercises and treatments to provide stability and longevity. Although the concept has been important within many Chinese philosophies, over the centuries the descriptions of qi have varied and have sometimes been in conflict. Until China came into contact with Western scientific and philosophical ideas, the Chinese had not categorized all things in terms of matter and energy. Qi and li (: "pattern") were 'fundamental' categories similar to matter and energy. Fairly early on, some Chinese thinkers began to believe