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擇善固執

简择善固执 · 繁擇善固執

Mandarin · pinyin zé shàn gù zhí

to choose what is good and hold fast to it (idiom)

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Characters in this entry

擇: Look up this written character
善: shàn · good, virtuous, charitable, kind
固: gù · to become solid, solidify; strength
執: Look up this written character
择: zé · select, choose, pick out
执: zhí · hold in hand; keep; carry out

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

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Mandarin tones

2–4–4–2 · ze2 shan4 gu4 zhi2

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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.

擇善固執 · find source passages ↗ · 择善固执 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

zaak6 sin6 gu3 zap1

Cantonese word readings for 擇善固執. 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 insist on the righteous cause

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

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