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Chinese/Dictionary entry

节衣缩食

jié yī suō shídictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
to save on food and clothing (idiom) / to live frugally
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-31659284f0f4ee84. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

節衣縮食 节衣缩食 [jie2 yi1 suo1 shi2] /to save on food and clothing (idiom); to live frugally/

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.

Other forms in these source records: 節衣縮食

  • 节
    jiē

    see 節骨眼|节骨眼[jiē gu yǎn]

    jié

    joint / node / (bound form) section / segment / solar term (one of the 24 divisions of the year in the traditional Chinese calendar) / seasonal festival / (bound form) to economize / to save / (bound form) moral integrity / chastity / classifier for segments: lessons, train wagons, biblical verses etc / knot (nautical miles per hour)

  • 衣
    yī

    clothes / CL:件[jiàn] / Kangxi radical 145

    yì

    to dress / to wear / to put on (clothes)

  • 缩
    suō

    to withdraw / to pull back / to contract / to shrink / to reduce / abbreviation / also pr. [sù]

  • 食
    shí

    to eat / food / animal feed / eclipse

    sì

    to feed (a person or animal)

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.