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招賢納士

简招贤纳士 · 繁招賢納士

Mandarin · pinyin zhāo xián nà shì

invite the talented and call the valorous (idiom); to recruit talent

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Characters in this entry

招: zhāo · beckon, summon; recruit, levy
賢: Look up this written character
納: Look up this written character
士: shì · scholar, gentleman; soldier
贤: xián · virtuous, worthy, good; able
纳: nà · admit, take, receive, accept

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

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Mandarin tones

1–2–4–4 · zhao1 xian2 na4 shi4

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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.

招賢納士 · find source passages ↗ · 招贤纳士 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

ziu1 jin4 naap6 si6

Cantonese word readings for 招賢納士. 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

(idiomatic) to invite men of wisdom and valor to one's side

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

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