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割雞焉用牛刀

简割鸡焉用牛刀 · 繁割雞焉用牛刀

Mandarin · pinyin gē jī yān yòng niú dāo

see 殺雞焉用牛刀 shā jī yān yòng niú dāo

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Characters in this entry

割: gē · cut, divide, partition; cede
雞: jī · chickens; domestic fowl
焉: yān · thereupon, then; how? why? where?
用: yòng · use, employ, apply, operate; use
牛: niú · cow, ox, bull; Kangxi radical 93; 9th lunar mansion, determinative star β Capricorni (Dabih)
刀: dāo · knife; old coin; measure
鸡: jī · chicken

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

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Mandarin tones

1–1–1–4–2–1 · ge1 ji1 yan1 yong4 niu2 dao1

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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.

割雞焉用牛刀 · find source passages ↗ · 割鸡焉用牛刀 · find source passages ↗

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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.

proverb

(rhetorical question) something of a big calibre is not necessary to handle small or minor problems; why use a sledgehammer to crack a nut

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

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