Where Else Have I Seen 精?

The kanji 精 (SEI, SHŌ) has an amusing range of meanings:

refined; ghost; fairy; energy; vitality; semen; excellence; purity; skill

That inspires me to make a sentence: “The refined ghost wanted to demonstrate his excellence and skill to the fairy, mainly by showing her the purity of his …” Sorry, this is getting a bit X-rated.

If you’ve seen 精 before, here are the likely venues:

精神 (seishin: mind, soul)     spirit + mind, consciousness
精力 (seiryoku: energy, vitality, vigor)     energy + power
精密 (seimitsu: precise, detailed, minute, close)
     refined + detailed

We saw this one back in April.

精進料理 (shōjin ryōri: vegetarian Buddhist food served at temples)     meticulous + to offer + cuisine (last 2 chars.)

And we saw this in May.

I recently stumbled upon this usage in a Mishima story:

無精髭 (bushōhige: five o’clock shadow)     not + refined + beard

Just guessing at the definition of 精 here!

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