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良禽择木而栖

liáng qín zé mù ér qīdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
a fine bird chooses a tree to nest in (proverb) / fig. a talented person chooses a patron of integrity
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-d67691ce17b885d0. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

良禽擇木而棲 良禽择木而栖 [liang2 qin2 ze2 mu4 er2 qi1] /a fine bird chooses a tree to nest in (proverb)/fig. a talented person chooses a patron of integrity/

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: 良禽擇木而棲

  • 良
    liáng

    good / very / very much

  • 禽
    qín

    (bound form) birds / fowl / (literary) birds and animals

  • 择
    zé

    to select / to choose / to pick over / to pick out / to differentiate / to eliminate / also pr. [zhái]

  • 木
    mù

    (bound form) tree / (bound form) wood / unresponsive / numb / wooden

    Mù

    surname Mu

  • 而
    ér

    and / as well as / and so / but (not) / yet (not) / (indicates causal relation) / (indicates change of state) / (indicates contrast)

  • 栖
    qī

    to perch / to rest (of birds) / to dwell / to live / to stay

    xī

    used in 棲棲|栖栖[xī xī]

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.