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偃旗息鼓

Mandarin · pinyin yǎn qí xī gǔ

lit. lay down the flag and still the drums (idiom); fig. to cease
to give in

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Characters in this entry

偃: yǎn · cease, lay off, lay down
旗: qí · banner, flag, streamer
息: xī · rest, put stop to, end, cease
鼓: gǔ · drum; beat, top, strike; Kangxi radical 207

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

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Mandarin tones

3–2–1–3 · yan3 qi2 xi1 gu3

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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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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

jin2 kei4 sik1 gu2

Cantonese word readings for 偃旗息鼓. 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

(figuratively) to cease all activities

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

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