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奉為圭臬

简奉为圭臬 · 繁奉為圭臬

Mandarin · pinyin fèng wéi guī niè

to take as a guiding principle (idiom)

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Characters in this entry

奉: fèng · offer; receive; serve; respect
為: Look up this written character
圭: guī · jade pointed at top
臬: niè · law, rule; door post
为: wèi · do, handle, govern, act; be

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

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Mandarin tones

4–2–1–4 · feng4 wei2 gui1 nie4

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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.

奉為圭臬 · find source passages ↗ · 奉为圭臬 · 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

(idiomatic) to look up to as a standard; to hold up as a model; to take as a guiding principle

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

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