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緩不濟急

简缓不济急 · 繁緩不濟急

Mandarin · pinyin huǎn bù jì jí

lit. slow no aid to urgent (idiom); slow measures will not address a critical situation
too slow to meet a pressing need

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Characters in this entry

緩: Look up this written character
不: bù · no, not; un-; negative prefix
濟: Look up this written character
急: jí · quick, quickly; urgent, pressing
缓: huǎn · slow, leisurely; to postpone, delay
济: jì · help, aid, relieve; ferry, cross

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

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Mandarin tones

3–4–4–2 · huan3 bu4 ji4 ji2

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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.

緩不濟急 · find source passages ↗ · 缓不济急 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

wun6 bat1 zai3 gap1

Cantonese word readings for 緩不濟急. 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

(of an action or plan) to be too slow and unable to address an urgent situation

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

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