DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

牽制

简牵制 · 繁牽制

Mandarin · pinyin qiān zhì

to control
to curb
to restrict
to impede
to pin down (enemy troops)

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

牽: Look up this written character
制: zhì · system; establish; overpower
牵: qiān · drag, pull, lead by hand

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

1–4 · qian1 zhi4

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

2character 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.

牽制 · find source passages ↗ · 牵制 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Rime · Wiktionary

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

hin1 zai3

Cantonese word readings for 牽制. 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.

verb

(figurative) to pin down; to tie up; to check (e.g. the enemy forces); to encumber
(baseball) to stop a runner from stealing a base by throwing the baseball to the man on base

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

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