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開源

简开源 · 繁開源

Mandarin · pinyin kāi yuán

to establish additional sources of revenue
(computing) open-source (abbr. for 開放源碼 kāi fàng yuán mǎ)

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Characters in this entry

開: kāi · open; initiate, begin, start
源: yuán · spring; source, head; surname
开: kāi · open; initiate, begin, start

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

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Mandarin tones

1–2 · kai1 yuan2

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3character links2same-tone records1source reference

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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.

開源 · find source passages ↗ · 开源 · find source passages ↗

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Rime Cantonese 粵拼

hoi1 jyun4

Cantonese word readings for 開源. 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.

noun

(computing) open source (the practice of providing open-source code)

verb

(computing) to open-source
(literary, of the source of a river) to begin to emerge

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

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