The New Dictionary.
Search dictionary
Chinese/Dictionary entry

小隐隐于野，大隐隐于市

xiǎo yǐn yǐn yú yě , dà yǐn yǐn yú shìdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
an ordinary hermit lives in the seclusion of the wild / the true recluse chooses the city (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-82331f3a41fdc1f1. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

小隱隱於野，大隱隱於市 小隐隐于野，大隐隐于市 [xiao3 yin3 yin3 yu2 ye3 , da4 yin3 yin3 yu2 shi4] /an ordinary hermit lives in the seclusion of the wild; the true recluse chooses the city (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.

Other forms in these source records: 小隱隱於野，大隱隱於市

  • 小
    xiǎo

    small / tiny / few / young

  • 隐
    yǐn

    (bound form) secret / hidden / concealed / crypto-

    yìn

    to lean upon

  • 隐
    yǐn

    (bound form) secret / hidden / concealed / crypto-

    yìn

    to lean upon

  • 于
    yú

    to go / to take / sentence-final interrogative particle / (of time or place) in / at / on / (indicating any indirect relation) to / toward / vis-à-vis / with regard to / for / (indicating a source) from / out of / (used in comparison) than / (used in the passive voice) by

    Yú

    surname Yu

  • 野
    yě

    field / plain / open space / limit / boundary / rude / feral

  • 大
    dà

    big / large / great / older (than another person) / eldest (as in 大姐[dà jiě]) / greatly / freely / fully / (dialect) father / (dialect) uncle (father's brother)

    dài

    see 大夫[dài fu]

  • 隐
    yǐn

    (bound form) secret / hidden / concealed / crypto-

    yìn

    to lean upon

  • 隐
    yǐn

    (bound form) secret / hidden / concealed / crypto-

    yìn

    to lean upon

  • 于
    yú

    to go / to take / sentence-final interrogative particle / (of time or place) in / at / on / (indicating any indirect relation) to / toward / vis-à-vis / with regard to / for / (indicating a source) from / out of / (used in comparison) than / (used in the passive voice) by

    Yú

    surname Yu

  • 市
    shì

    market / city / municipality (administrative unit) / (literary) to trade / to buy and sell goods

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.