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矯揉造作

简矫揉造作 · 繁矯揉造作

Mandarin · pinyin jiǎo róu zào zuò

pretension
affectation
putting on artificial airs

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Characters in this entry

矯: Look up this written character
揉: róu · rub, massage; crush by hand
造: zào · construct, build, make, begin; prepare
作: zuò · make; work; compose, write; act, perform
矫: jiǎo · correct, rectify, straighten out

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

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Mandarin tones

3–2–4–4 · jiao3 rou2 zao4 zuo4

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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.

矯揉造作 · find source passages ↗ · 矫揉造作 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

giu1 jau4 zou6 zok3

Cantonese word readings for 矯揉造作. 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.

phrase

(idiomatic) affected; artificial; fakey

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

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