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禍從口出

简祸从口出 · 繁禍從口出

Mandarin · pinyin huò cóng kǒu chū

Trouble issues from the mouth (idiom). A loose tongue may cause a lot of trouble.

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Characters in this entry

禍: Look up this written character
從: cóng · from, by, since, whence, through
口: kǒu · mouth; open end; entrance, gate
出: chū · go out, send out; stand; produce
祸: huò · misfortune, calamity, disaster
从: cóng · from, by, since, whence, through

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

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Mandarin tones

4–2–3–1 · huo4 cong2 kou3 chu1

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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.

禍從口出 · find source passages ↗ · 祸从口出 · find source passages ↗

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Rime Cantonese 粵拼

wo6 cung4 hau2 ceot1

Cantonese word readings for 禍從口出. 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) trouble goes out of the mouth; loose lips sink ships

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

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