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不問青紅皂白

简不问青红皂白 · 繁不問青紅皂白

Mandarin · pinyin bù wèn qīng hóng zào bái

not distinguishing red-green or black-white (idiom)
not to distinguish between right and wrong

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Characters in this entry

不: bù · no, not; un-; negative prefix
問: wèn · ask (about), inquire after
青: qīng · blue, green; young; Kangxi radical 174
紅: hóng · red, vermillion; blush, flush
皂: zào · soap; black; menial servant
白: bái · white; pure, unblemished; bright
问: wèn · ask about, inquire after
红: hóng · red, vermillion; blush, flush

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

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Mandarin tones

4–4–1–2–4–2 · bu4 wen4 qing1 hong2 zao4 bai2

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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.

不問青紅皂白 · find source passages ↗ · 不问青红皂白 · find source passages ↗

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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.

phrase

(idiomatic) without forethought

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

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