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家徒四壁

Mandarin · pinyin jiā tú sì bì

lit. with only four bare walls for a home (idiom)
fig. very poor
wretched

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Characters in this entry

家: jiā · house, home, residence; family
徒: tú · disciple, follower; go on foot
四: sì · four
壁: bì · partition wall; walls of a house; 14th lunar mansion, determinative star γ Pegasi (Algenib)

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Mandarin tones

1–2–4–4 · jia1 tu2 si4 bi4

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

gaa1 tou4 sei3 bik1

Cantonese word readings for 家徒四壁. 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

(figurative) very poor; wretched

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

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