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十賭九輸

简十赌九输 · 繁十賭九輸

Mandarin · pinyin shí dǔ jiǔ shū

lit. in gambling, nine times out of ten you lose (idiom)
fig. gambling is a mug's game

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Characters in this entry

十: shí · ten, tenth; complete; perfect
賭: Look up this written character
九: jiǔ · nine
輸: Look up this written character
赌: dǔ · bet, gamble, wager; compete
输: shū · transport, carry, haul

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

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Mandarin tones

2–3–3–1 · shi2 du3 jiu3 shu1

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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.

十賭九輸 · find source passages ↗ · 十赌九输 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

sap6 dou2 gau2 syu1

Cantonese word readings for 十賭九輸. 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

(figurative) gambling is a scam

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

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