治標不治本

简 治标不治本 · 繁 治標不治本
Mandarin · pinyin zhì biāo bù zhì běn

Meanings

  1. to treat the symptoms but not the root cause
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Characters in this entry

治
zhì · govern, regulate, administer
標
Look up this written character
不
bù · no, not; un-; negative prefix
本
běn · root, origin, source; basis
标
biāo · mark, symbol, label, sign; stand the bole of a tree
Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

4–1–4–4–3 · zhi4 biao1 bu4 zhi4 ben3

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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.

治標不治本 · find source passages ↗ · 治标不治本 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

zi6 biu1 bat1 zi6 bun2

Cantonese word readings for 治標不治本. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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

治標不治本 · zhi4 biao1 bu4 zhi4 ben3
CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG · edition 2026-10-13 · source line 63,729
Original dictionary · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source & transformation details
Exact source record治標不治本 治标不治本 [zhi4 biao1 bu4 zhi4 ben3] /to treat the symptoms but not the root cause/