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三教九流

Mandarin · pinyin sān jiào jiǔ liú

the Three Religions (Daoism, Confucianism, Buddhism) and Nine Schools (Confucians, Daoists, Yin-Yang, Legalists, Logicians, Mohists, Political Strategists, Eclectics, Agriculturists)
fig. people from all trades (often derog.)

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Characters in this entry

三: sān · three
教: jiào · teach, class
九: jiǔ · nine
流: liú · flow, circulate, drift; class

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Mandarin tones

1–4–3–2 · san1 jiao4 jiu3 liu2

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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

different schools of thought
(often derogatory) people from all walks of life

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

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