藉口

Mandarin · pinyin jiè kǒu

Meanings

  1. to use as an excuse
  2. on the pretext
  3. excuse
  4. pretext
  5. also written 借口 jiè kǒu
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Characters in this entry

藉
jí · mat, pad; rely on; pretext
口
kǒu · mouth; open end; entrance, gate
Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

4–3 · jie4 kou3

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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.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 2 senses · 2 Cantonese readings

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

ze3 hau2 · zik6 hau2

Cantonese word readings for 藉口. 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.

noun

  1. excuse; pretext

verb

  1. to use as an excuse

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

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack