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磨穿鐵硯

简磨穿铁砚 · 繁磨穿鐵硯

Mandarin · pinyin mó chuān tiě yàn

to grind one's way through an ink stone
to persevere in a difficult task (idiom)
to study diligently (idiom)

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Characters in this entry

磨: mó · grind; polish; rub; wear out; a millstone
穿: chuān · penetrate, pierce, drill; wear
鐵: Look up this written character
硯: Look up this written character
铁: tiě · iron; strong, solid, firm
砚: yàn · inkstone

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

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Mandarin tones

2–1–3–4 · mo2 chuan1 tie3 yan4

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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.

磨穿鐵硯 · find source passages ↗ · 磨穿铁砚 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 2 Cantonese readings

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

mo4 cyun1 tit3 jin2 · mo4 cyun1 tit3 jin6

Cantonese word readings for 磨穿鐵硯. 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

(figuratively) to show extreme diligence in one's studies

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

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