DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

言傳身教

简言传身教 · 繁言傳身教

Mandarin · pinyin yán chuán shēn jiào

to teach by words and example (idiom)

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

言: yán · words, speech; speak, say; Kangxi radical 149
傳: chuán · summon; propagate, transmit
身: shēn · body; trunk, hull; Kangxi radical 158
教: jiào · teach, class
传: chuán · summon; propagate, transmit

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

2–2–1–4 · yan2 chuan2 shen1 jiao4

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

5character links

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.

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.

言傳身教 · find source passages ↗ · 言传身教 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

jin4 cyun4 san1 gaau3

Cantonese word readings for 言傳身教. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

phrase

(idiomatic) to teach by personal example as well as verbal instruction

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

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