十指不沾陽春水
简 十指不沾阳春水 · 繁 十指不沾陽春水Meanings
- (saying) (usu. of a woman) to have no need to do household chores (washing clothes etc); to lead a pampered life
Characters in this entry
- 十
- shí · ten, tenth; complete; perfect
- 指
- zhǐ · finger, toe; point, indicate
- 不
- bù · no, not; un-; negative prefix
- 沾
- zhān · moisten, wet, soak; touch
- 陽
- yáng · the active, male principle in Chinese philosophy (yang); light; sun
- 春
- chūn · spring; wanton
- 水
- shuǐ · water, liquid, lotion, juice
- 阳
- yáng · 'male' principle; light; sun
Explore the spelling
Mandarin tones
2–3–4–1–2–1–3 · shi2 zhi3 bu4 zhan1 yang2 chun1 shui3
Compare attested words with these syllables ↗Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.
Connected dictionary
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.
十指不沾陽春水 · find source passages ↗ · 十指不沾阳春水 · find source passages ↗
Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading
Rime Cantonese 粵拼
sap6 zi2 bat1 zim1 joeng4 ceon1 seoi2
Cantonese word readings for 十指不沾陽春水. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.
CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack
Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section
Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.
phrase
- (idiomatic) to lead a spoiled and pampered life
Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack