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插手

Mandarin · pinyin chā shǒu

to get involved in
to meddle
interference

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Characters in this entry

插: chā · insert, stick into; plant
手: shǒu · hand

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

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Mandarin tones

1–3 · cha1 shou3

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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 · 4 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

caap3 sau2

Cantonese word readings for 插手. 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.

verb

(verb-object) to poke one's nose into; to meddle in
(verb-object) to take part; to lend a hand
(Taiwanese Hokkien) to put one's hand in (one's pocket, muff, etc.)

noun

(Cantonese, Leizhou Min) pickpocket

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

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