孟母择邻 mèngmǔzélín Mencius' mother chooses her neighbors Definitions Defs Origin Strokes Stroke Words Sentences Sents 孟 mèng Mencius (bound form) referring to the philosopher 孟子 mèngzǐ or the classic text named after him母 mǔ noun mother mother; female parent择邻 擇鄰 zélín to select neighbors (literary) to choose a good neighborhood or virtuous neighbors to live near