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饕餮

Mandarin · pinyin tāo tiè

ferocious mythological animal, the fifth son of the dragon king
zoomorphic mask motif, found on Shang and Zhou ritual bronzes
gluttonous
sumptuous (banquet)

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Characters in this entry

饕: tāo · gluttonous, greedy, covetous
餮: tiè · a legendary animal; a greedy person

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

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Mandarin tones

1–4 · tao1 tie4

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 4 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

tou1 tit3

Cantonese word readings for 饕餮. 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.

noun

(Chinese mythology) taotie (legendary gluttonous animal)
(～紋) taotie (stylized design frequently found on ancient bronzes)
(figurative) gourmand; glutton; voracious eater
(figurative) fierce and greedy person

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

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