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乂

Mandarin · pinyin yì

to regulate
to govern
to control
to mow

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乂: yì · govern, control, manage; nurture

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

4 · yi4

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1character link177same-tone records

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 4 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

ngaai6

Cantonese word readings for 乂. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

character

original form of 刈 (yì, “to weed; to mow”)
to govern; to control; to manage; to regulate
to nurture

character

to discipline; to punish

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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