敬而远之
jìng'ér​yuǎn​zhī HSK7

to keep a respectful distance

  • created sense approved 敬而远之/敬而遠之 · jìng'ér​yuǎn​zhī · to keep a respectful distance — "Initial import from upstream dictionary"

    敬而远之 / 敬而遠之

    jìng'ér​yuǎn​zhī

    to keep a respectful distance

    Originally from the Analects [[论语|論語|lun2 yu3]], referring to the treatment of spirits; now used to show someone outward respect while staying away or avoiding close contact; to give someone or something a wide berth due to concerns or a desire to avoid trouble

    jìng'ér​yuàn​zhī

    敬 (literal) → 敬 · jìng · to respect 而 (literal) → 而 · ér · [adverbial linker] 远 (literal) → 远/遠 · yuàn · to keep away from 之 (literal) → 之 · zhī · it

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

    created sense