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不敢越雷池一步

Mandarin · pinyin bù gǎn yuè Léi chí yī bù

dare not go one step beyond the prescribed limit

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Characters in this entry

不: bù · no, not; un-; negative prefix
敢: gǎn · to dare, venture; bold, brave
越: yuè · exceed, go beyond; the more ...
雷: léi · thunder
池: chí · pool, pond; moat; cistern
一: yī · one; a, an; alone
步: bù · step, pace; walk, stroll

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

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Mandarin tones

4–3–4–2–2–1–4 · bu4 gan3 yue4 Lei2 chi2 yi1 bu4

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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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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

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

phrase

(idiomatic) to dare not go one step beyond the limit; to stay strictly within bounds

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

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