míng​bù​zhèng​zé​yán​bù​shùn

if the name is not right, then the words will not flow

  • created sense approved 名不正则言不顺/名不正則言不順 · míng​bù​zhèng​zé​yán​bù​shùn · if the name is not right, then the words will not flow — "Initial import from upstream dictionary"

    名不正则言不顺 / 名不正則言不順

    míng​bù​zhèng​zé​yán​bù​shùn

    if the name is not right, then the words will not flow

    If a title or status is not proper or legitimate, then whatever is said will not sound reasonable or be persuasive; originates from the [[论语|論語|lun2 yu3]]

    名 (literal) → 名 · míng · [position] 不 (literal) → 不 · bù · not 正 (literal) → 正 · zhèng · correct 则 (literal) → 则/則 · zé · then 言 (literal) → 言 · yán · speech 不 (literal) → 不 · bù · not 顺 (literal) → 顺/順 · shùn · smooth

    Changed: simplified, traditional, gloss, definition, pinyin, variant pinyin, variants, separable parts, decomposition

    created sense