旁 观 者 清

páng guān zhě qīngdictionary entry

an outsider can see things more clearly or objectively than those involved (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-d19ce317b51f9204. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

旁觀者清 旁观者清 [pang2 guan1 zhe3 qing1] /an outsider can see things more clearly or objectively than those involved (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: 旁觀者清

旁
páng
one side / other / different / lateral component of a Chinese character (such as 刂[dāo], 亻[rén] 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
者
zhě
(after a verb or adjective) one who (is) ... / (after a noun) person involved in ... / -er / -ist / (used after a number or 後|后[hòu] or 前[qián] to refer to sth mentioned previously) / (used after a term, to mark a pause before defining the term) / (old) (used at the end of a command) / (old) this
清
qīng
(of water etc) clear / clean / quiet / still / pure / uncorrupted / clear / distinct / to clear / to settle (accounts)
Qīng
Qing (Wade-Giles: Ch'ing) dynasty of China (1644–1911) / surname Qing

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.