DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

如履薄冰

Mandarin · pinyin rú lǚ bó bīng

(lit.) as if walking on thin ice (idiom)
(fig.) extremely cautious

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

如: rú · if, supposing; as if; like, as
履: lǚ · footwear, shoes; walk on, tread; hexagram ䷉
薄: báo · bó · thin, slight, weak; poor, stingy
冰: bīng · ice; ice-cold

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

2–3–2–1 · ru2 lu:3 bo2 bing1

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

4character links

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.

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.

如履薄冰 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

phrase

(figurative) in a careful manner; acting with extreme caution; like skating on thin ice

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

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack