DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

棘手

Mandarin · pinyin jí shǒu

thorny (problem)
intractable

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Characters in this entry

棘: jí · jujube tree; thorns, brambles
手: shǒu · hand

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

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Mandarin tones

2–3 · ji2 shou3

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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 · 2 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

kik1 sau2

Cantonese word readings for 棘手. 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.

adj

(literally) thorny
(figuratively) difficult to handle; thorny; troublesome; knotty; prickly; intractable

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

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