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開誠布公

简开诚布公 · 繁開誠布公

Mandarin · pinyin kāi chéng bù gōng

lit. deal sincerely and fairly (idiom); frank and open-minded
plain speaking
Let's talk frankly and openly between ourselves.
to put one's cards on the table

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Characters in this entry

開: kāi · open; initiate, begin, start
誠: Look up this written character
布: bù · cotton cloth, textiles, linen
公: gōng · fair, equitable; public; duke
开: kāi · open; initiate, begin, start
诚: chéng · sincere, honest; true, real

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

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Mandarin tones

1–2–4–1 · kai1 cheng2 bu4 gong1

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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.

開誠布公 · find source passages ↗ · 开诚布公 · 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 wear one's heart on one's sleeve; to be frank and sincere

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

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