DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT
金盆洗手
Mandarin · pinyin jīn pén xǐ shǒu
Meanings
- lit. to wash one's hands in a gold basin (idiom)
- fig. to abandon the life of an outlaw
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Mandarin tones
1–2–3–3 · jin1 pen2 xi3 shou3
Compare attested words with these syllables ↗Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.
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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.
Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 2 senses · 1 Cantonese reading
Rime Cantonese 粵拼
gam1 pun4 sai2 sau2
Cantonese word readings for 金盆洗手. 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.
phrase
- (figurative) to abandon one's life as an outlaw (after having made a fortune)
- (by extension) to abandon one's decade-long career; to give up on something one does as a routine
Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history
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