DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT
為五斗米折腰
简 为五斗米折腰 · 繁 為五斗米折腰Mandarin · pinyin wèi wǔ dǒu mǐ zhé yāo
Meanings
- (allusion to Tao Qian 陶潛 Táo Qián, who used this phrase when he resigned from government service rather than show subservience to a visiting inspector) to bow and scrape for five pecks of rice (that being a part of his salary as a local magistrate)
- (fig.) to compromise one's principles for the sake of a salary
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Mandarin tones
4–3–3–3–2–1 · wei4 wu3 dou3 mi3 zhe2 yao1
Compare attested words with these syllables ↗Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.
Connected dictionary
6character links1source reference
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.
為五斗米折腰 · find source passages ↗ · 为五斗米折腰 · find source passages ↗