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見風使帆

简见风使帆 · 繁見風使帆

Mandarin · pinyin jiàn fēng shǐ fān

lit. see the wind and set your sails (idiom); fig. to act pragmatically
to be flexible and take advantage of the situation

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Characters in this entry

見: jiàn · see, observe, behold; perceive; Kangxi radical 147
風: fēng · wind; air; manners, atmosphere; Kangxi radical 182
使: shǐ · cause, send on a mission, order; envoy, messenger, ambassador
帆: fān · fán · sail; boat
见: jiàn · see, observe, behold; perceive
风: fēng · wind; air; manners, atmosphere

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

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Mandarin tones

4–1–3–1 · jian4 feng1 shi3 fan1

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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.

見風使帆 · find source passages ↗ · 见风使帆 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

gin3 fung1 sai2 faan4

Cantonese word readings for 見風使帆. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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