借 口

jiè kǒudictionary entry

to use as an excuse / excuse; pretext

Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-114d59ec157775bd. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

借口借口 [jie4 kou3] /to use as an excuse/excuse; pretext/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

借
jiè
to borrow / (used in combination with 給|给[gěi] or 出[chū] etc) to lend / to make use of; to avail oneself of / (sometimes followed by 著|着[zhe]) by; with
口
kǒu
mouth / classifier for things with mouths (people, domestic animals, cannons, wells etc) / classifier for bites or mouthfuls

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.