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大智若愚

Mandarin · pinyin dà zhì ruò yú

(idiom) great intelligence may appear to be stupidity

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Characters in this entry

大: dà · big, great, vast, large, high
智: zhì · wisdom, knowledge, intelligence
若: ruò · if, supposing, assuming; similar
愚: yú · stupid, doltish, foolish

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

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Mandarin tones

4–4–4–2 · da4 zhi4 ruo4 yu2

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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.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

daai6 zi3 joek6 jyu4

Cantonese word readings for 大智若愚. 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

(simile) having great intelligence but appearing foolish; a man of great wisdom appearing slow-witted

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

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