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人在江湖，身不由己

Mandarin · pinyin rén zài jiāng hú , shēn bù yóu jǐ

(proverb) you can't always do as you like; one has to compromise in this world

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Characters in this entry

人: rén · man; people; mankind; someone else
在: zài · be at, in, on; consist in, rest
江: jiāng · large river; the Yangzi; surname
湖: hú · a lake; Hubei, Hunan; bluish-green
身: shēn · body; trunk, hull; Kangxi radical 158
不: bù · no, not; un-; negative prefix
由: yóu · cause, reason; from
己: jǐ · self, oneself; personal, private; 6th heavenly stem

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