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外圓內方

简外圆内方 · 繁外圓內方

Mandarin · pinyin wài yuán nèi fāng

lit. outside-flexible, inside-firm (idiom)
fig. velvet glove

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Characters in this entry

外: wài · out, outside, external; foreign
圓: yuán · circle; round, circular; complete
內: nèi · inside, interior; domestic
方: fāng · a square, rectangle; a region; local
圆: yuán · circle; round, circular; complete
内: nèi · inside

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

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Mandarin tones

4–2–4–1 · wai4 yuan2 nei4 fang1

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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.

外圓內方 · find source passages ↗ · 外圆内方 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

ngoi6 jyun4 noi6 fong1

Cantonese word readings for 外圓內方. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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