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失道寡助

shī dào guǎ zhùdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
an unjust cause finds little support (idiom, from Mencius) / cf 得道多助[dé dào duō zhù] a just cause attracts much support
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-8c169779b91a9597. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

失道寡助 失道寡助 [shi1 dao4 gua3 zhu4] /an unjust cause finds little support (idiom, from Mencius)/cf 得道多助[de2 dao4 duo1 zhu4] a just cause attracts much support/

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.

  • 失
    shī

    to lose / to miss / to fail

  • 道
    dào

    road / path (CL:條|条[tiáo],股[gǔ]) / (bound form) way / reason / principle / (bound form) a skill / an art / a specialization / (Daoism) the Way / the Dao / to say (introducing a direct quotation, as in a novel) / (bound form) to express / to extend (polite words) / classifier for long thin things (rivers, cracks, shadows etc), barriers (walls, doors etc), questions (in an exam etc), commands, courses in a meal, steps in a process / (old) circuit (administrative division)

  • 寡
    guǎ

    few / scant / widowed

  • 助
    zhù

    to help / to assist

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.