舍 本 逐 末

shě běn zhú mòdictionary entry

to neglect the root and pursue the tip (idiom) / to neglect fundamentals and concentrate on details

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-9c9450b262d68a89. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

捨本逐末 舍本逐末 [she3 ben3 zhu2 mo4] /to neglect the root and pursue the tip (idiom)/to neglect fundamentals and concentrate on details/

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: 捨本逐末

舍
shě
to give up / to abandon / to give alms
shè
(bound form) residence / house / (bound form) my (in speaking of relatives younger than oneself, as in 舍妹[shè mèi]) / (archaic) unit of distance equal to 30 li 里[lǐ]
Shè
surname She
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
逐
zhú
(bound form) to pursue / to chase / to drive away / one by one / individually
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

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.