本 末 倒 置

běn mò dào zhìdictionary entry

lit. to invert root and branch (idiom) / fig. confusing cause and effect / to stress the incidental over the fundamental / to put the cart before the horse

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-677c1758a15ce484. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

本末倒置 本末倒置 [ben3 mo4 dao4 zhi4] /lit. to invert root and branch (idiom); fig. confusing cause and effect/to stress the incidental over the fundamental/to put the cart before the horse/

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.

本
běn
(bound form) root / stem / (bound form) origin / source / (bound form) one's own / this / (bound form) this / the current (year etc) / (bound form) original / (bound form) inherent / originally / initially / capital / principal / classifier for books, periodicals, files etc
末
me
See the full entry for source details.
mò
tip / end / final stage / latter part / inessential detail / powder / dust / opera role of old man
倒
dǎo
to fall / to collapse / to lie horizontally / to fail / to go bankrupt / to overthrow / to change (trains or buses) / to move around / to resell at a profit
dào
to invert / to place upside down or frontside back / to pour out / to tip out / to dump / inverted / upside down / reversed / to go backward / contrary to what one might expect / but / yet
置
zhì
to install / to place / to put / to buy

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.