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守口如瓶

Mandarin · pinyin shǒu kǒu rú píng

lit. to guard one's mouth like a closed bottle (idiom); tight-lipped
reticent
not breathing a word

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Characters in this entry

守: shǒu · defend, protect, guard, conserve
口: kǒu · mouth; open end; entrance, gate
如: rú · if, supposing; as if; like, as
瓶: píng · jug, pitcher, vase, jar, bottle

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

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Mandarin tones

3–3–2–2 · shou3 kou3 ru2 ping2

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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

sau2 hau2 jyu4 ping4

Cantonese word readings for 守口如瓶. 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) to keep one's mouth shut; to remain tight-lipped

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

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