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眼观四处，耳听八方

yǎn guān sì chù , ěr tīng bā fāngdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
see 眼觀四面，耳聽八方|眼观四面，耳听八方[yǎn guān sì miàn , ěr tīng bā fāng]
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-7eed8111f859b211. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

眼觀四處，耳聽八方 眼观四处，耳听八方 [yan3 guan1 si4 chu4 , er3 ting1 ba1 fang1] /see 眼觀四面，耳聽八方|眼观四面，耳听八方[yan3 guan1 si4 mian4 , er3 ting1 ba1 fang1]/

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: 眼觀四處，耳聽八方

  • 眼
    yǎn

    eye (CL:隻|只[zhī],雙|双[shuāng]) / (often used with 一[yī]) a look / a glance / small hole / (bound form) salient point / classifier for wells, cave-dwellings etc

  • 观
    guān

    to look at / to watch / to observe / to behold / to advise / concept / point of view / outlook

    guàn

    Taoist monastery / palace gate watchtower / platform

    Guàn

    surname Guan

  • 四
    sì

    four / 4

  • 处
    chǔ

    to reside / to live / to dwell / to be in / to be situated at / to stay / to get along with / to be in a position of / to deal with / to discipline / to punish

    chù

    (bound form) place / locality / (bound form) part / aspect / (bound form) office / department / bureau / classifier for locations: spot, point

  • 耳
    ěr

    ear / handle (archaeology) / and that is all (Classical Chinese)

  • 听
    yǐn

    smile (archaic)

    tīng

    to listen to / to hear / to heed / to obey / a can (loanword from English "tin") / classifier for canned beverages / to let be / to allow (Taiwan pr. [tìng]) / (literary) to administer / to deal with (Taiwan pr. [tìng])

  • 八
    bā

    eight

  • 方
    fāng

    square / power or involution (math.) / upright / honest / fair and square / direction / side / party (to a contract, dispute etc) / place / method / prescription (medicine) / just when / only or just / classifier for square things / abbr. for square or cubic meter

    Fāng

    surname Fang

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.