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有所得必有所失

Mandarin · pinyin yǒu suǒ dé bì yǒu suǒ shī

there is no gain without a loss (idiom)
there is no such thing as a free meal

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Characters in this entry

有: yǒu · have, own, possess; exist
所: suǒ · place, location; numerary adjunct
得: dé · obtain, get, gain, acquire
必: bì · surely, most certainly; must
失: shī · lose; make mistake, neglect

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

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Mandarin tones

3–3–2–4–3–3–1 · you3 suo3 de2 bi4 you3 suo3 shi1

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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 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

jau5 so2 dak1 bit1 jau5 so2 sat1

Cantonese word readings for 有所得必有所失. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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