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尸位素餐

Mandarin · pinyin shī wèi sù cān

to hold a sinecure (idiom)

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Characters in this entry

尸: shī · corpse; to impersonate the dead; to preside; Kangxi radical 44
位: wèi · throne; position, post; rank, status; seat
素: sù · white (silk); plain; vegetarian; formerly; normally
餐: cān · eat, dine; meal; food

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

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Mandarin tones

1–4–4–1 · shi1 wei4 su4 can1

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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

si1 wai6 sou3 caan1

Cantonese word readings for 尸位素餐. 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

(derogatory or humble) hold one's position and live without doing anything

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

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