DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

東拼西湊

简东拼西凑 · 繁東拼西湊

Mandarin · pinyin dōng pīn xī còu

(idiom) to assemble from bits and pieces; to combine items from disparate sources

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

東: dōng · east, eastern, eastward
拼: pīn · join together, link, incorporate
西: xī · west(ern); westward; occident; Kangxi radical 146
湊: Look up this written character
东: dōng · east, eastern, eastward
凑: còu · piece together, assemble

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

1–1–1–4 · dong1 pin1 xi1 cou4

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

5character links

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.

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.

東拼西湊 · find source passages ↗ · 东拼西凑 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

dung1 ping3 sai1 cau3

Cantonese word readings for 東拼西湊. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

phrase

(idiomatic) to assemble bits and pieces; to gather from all over the place

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

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack