DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

破舊立新

简破旧立新 · 繁破舊立新

Mandarin · pinyin pò jiù lì xīn

to get rid of the old to bring in the new (idiom); to innovate

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

破: pò · break, ruin, destroy; rout
舊: Look up this written character
立: lì · stand; let stand; establish, set
新: xīn · new, recent, fresh, modern
旧: jiù · old, ancient; former, past

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

4–4–4–1 · po4 jiu4 li4 xin1

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

4character 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.

破舊立新 · find source passages ↗ · 破旧立新 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗