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知子莫若父

zhī zǐ mò ruò fùdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
nobody understands one's son better than his father (idiom)
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-206d034212426925. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

知子莫若父 知子莫若父 [zhi1 zi3 mo4 ruo4 fu4] /nobody understands one's son better than his father (idiom)/

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.

  • 知
    zhī

    to know / to be aware

  • 子
    zǐ

    son / child / seed / egg / small thing / 1st earthly branch: 11 p.m.–1 a.m., midnight, 11th solar month (7th December to 5th January), year of the rat / viscount, fourth of five orders of nobility 五等爵位[wǔ děng jué wèi] / ancient Chinese compass point: 0° (north) / subsidiary / subordinate / (prefix) sub-

    zi

    noun suffix, as in 椅子[yǐ zi] "chair"

  • 莫
    mò

    do not / there is none who

    Mò

    surname Mo

  • 若
    rě

    used in 般若[bō rě] / used in 蘭若|兰若[lán rě]

    ruò

    to seem / like / as / if

  • 父
    fù

    (bound form) father / (bound form) male relative of father's generation (as in 伯父[bó fù]) / (computing) (bound form) parent-

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.