以慎為鍵

简 以慎为键 · 繁 以慎為鍵
Mandarin · pinyin yǐ shèn wéi jiàn

Meanings

  1. to take caution as the key (idiom); to proceed very carefully
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Characters in this entry

以
yǐ · by means of; thereby, therefore; consider as; in order to
慎
shèn · act with care, be cautious
為
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鍵
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为
wèi · do, handle, govern, act; be
键
jiàn · door bolt, lock bolt; key
Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

3–4–2–4 · yi3 shen4 wei2 jian4

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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.

以慎為鍵 · find source passages ↗ · 以慎为键 · find source passages ↗

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以慎為鍵 · yi3 shen4 wei2 jian4
CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG · edition 2026-10-13 · source line 6,489
Original dictionary · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source & transformation details
Exact source record以慎為鍵 以慎为键 [yi3 shen4 wei2 jian4] /to take caution as the key (idiom); to proceed very carefully/