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開源節流

简开源节流 · 繁開源節流

Mandarin · pinyin kāi yuán jié liú

lit. to open a water source and reduce outflow (idiom); to increase income and save on spending
to broaden the sources of income and economize on expenditure

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Characters in this entry

開: kāi · open; initiate, begin, start
源: yuán · spring; source, head; surname
節: Look up this written character
流: liú · flow, circulate, drift; class
开: kāi · open; initiate, begin, start
节: jié · knot, node, joint; section

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

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Mandarin tones

1–2–2–2 · kai1 yuan2 jie2 liu2

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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.

開源節流 · find source passages ↗ · 开源节流 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

hoi1 jyun4 zit3 lau4

Cantonese word readings for 開源節流. 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 increase income and reduce spending

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

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