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垂簾聽政

简垂帘听政 · 繁垂簾聽政

Mandarin · pinyin chuí lián tīng zhèng

lit. to govern from behind the curtain
to rule in place of the emperor (idiom)

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Characters in this entry

垂: chuí · let down; suspend, hand; down
簾: Look up this written character
聽: tīng · hear, listen; understand; obey
政: zhèng · government, political affairs
帘: lián · flag-sign of a tavern
听: tīng · hear; understand; obey, comply

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

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Mandarin tones

2–2–1–4 · chui2 lian2 ting1 zheng4

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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.

垂簾聽政 · find source passages ↗ · 垂帘听政 · 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.

phrase

(historical) (of female royal members, e.g. empress or empress dowager) to rule in place of a monarch; to serve as regent

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

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