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諱莫如深

简讳莫如深 · 繁諱莫如深

Mandarin · pinyin huì mò rú shēn

(idiom) to steadfastly refuse to discuss the matter; to treat it as an untouchable subject

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Characters in this entry

諱: Look up this written character
莫: mò · do not, is not, can not; negative
如: rú · if, supposing; as if; like, as
深: shēn · deep; depth; far; very, extreme
讳: huì · conceal; shun; regard as taboo

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

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Mandarin tones

4–4–2–1 · hui4 mo4 ru2 shen1

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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.

諱莫如深 · find source passages ↗ · 讳莫如深 · find source passages ↗

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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) to closely guard a secret and not utter a single word about it; to not breathe a word

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

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