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軟骨頭

简软骨头 · 繁軟骨頭

Mandarin · pinyin ruǎn gǔ tou

weak, cowardly person
spineless individual

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Characters in this entry

軟: Look up this written character
骨: gǔ · bone; skeleton; frame, framework; Kangxi radical 188
頭: tóu · head; top; chief, first; boss
软: ruǎn · soft, flexible, pliable; weak
头: tóu · head; top; chief, first; boss

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

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Mandarin tones

3–3–5 · ruan3 gu3 tou5

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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.

軟骨頭 · find source passages ↗ · 软骨头 · 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.

noun

coward; spineless person

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

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