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以身作則

简以身作则 · 繁以身作則

Mandarin · pinyin yǐ shēn zuò zé

to set an example (idiom); to serve as a model

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Characters in this entry

以: yǐ · by means of; thereby, therefore; consider as; in order to
身: shēn · body; trunk, hull; Kangxi radical 158
作: zuò · make; work; compose, write; act, perform
則: Look up this written character
则: zé · rule, law, regulation; grades

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

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Mandarin tones

3–1–4–2 · yi3 shen1 zuo4 ze2

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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.

以身作則 · find source passages ↗ · 以身作则 · find source passages ↗

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Rime Cantonese 粵拼

ji5 san1 zok3 zak1

Cantonese word readings for 以身作則. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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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 set an example; to serve as a model

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

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