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狗改不了吃屎

Mandarin · pinyin gǒu gǎi bù liǎo chī shǐ

lit. a dog can't stop himself from eating shit (idiom)
fig. bad habits are hard to change

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Characters in this entry

狗: gǒu · dog, Canis familiaris
改: gǎi · change, alter; improve, remodel
不: bù · no, not; un-; negative prefix
了: le · to finish; particle of completed action
吃: chī · eat; drink; suffer, endure, bear
屎: shǐ · excrement, shit, dung

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Mandarin tones

3–3–4–3–1–3 · gou3 gai3 bu4 liao3 chi1 shi3

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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.

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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.

proverb

(figurative, derogatory, low colloquial, idiomatic) a leopard cannot change its spots (said of bad habits or traits)

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

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