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沉溺

Mandarin · pinyin chén nì

(fig.) to indulge in; to wallow in (addiction, vice etc)
(literary) to sink into water

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沉: chén · sink, submerge; addicted to
溺: nì · drown; submerge in water; indulge

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Mandarin tones

2–4 · chen2 ni4

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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 · 2 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

cam4 nik1

Cantonese word readings for 沉溺. 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

(literal) to submerge in; to drown
(figurative) to indulge in; to wallow in; to abandon oneself to; to be engrossed in; to be addicted to; to be absorbed in

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

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