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開誠布公

简开诚布公 · 繁開誠布公

Mandarin · pinyin kāi chéng bù gōng

lit. deal sincerely and fairly (idiom); frank and open-minded
plain speaking
Let's talk frankly and openly between ourselves.
to put one's cards on the table

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Characters in this entry

開: kāi · open; initiate, begin, start
誠: Look up this written character
布: bù · cotton cloth, textiles, linen
公: gōng · fair, equitable; public; duke
开: kāi · open; initiate, begin, start
诚: chéng · sincere, honest; true, real

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

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Mandarin tones

1–2–4–1 · kai1 cheng2 bu4 gong1

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

hoi1 sing4 bou3 gung1

Pleco · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Word reading; meanings not aligned.

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

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

phrase

(idiomatic) to wear one's heart on one's sleeve; to be frank and sincere

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

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack