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陈谷子烂芝麻

chén gǔ zi làn zhī madictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
lit. stale grain, overcooked sesame (idiom) / fig. the same boring old gossip
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-d9fde5a6c3709ae4. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

陳谷子爛芝麻 陈谷子烂芝麻 [chen2 gu3 zi5 lan4 zhi1 ma5] /lit. stale grain, overcooked sesame (idiom); fig. the same boring old gossip/

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: 陳谷子爛芝麻

  • 陈
    chén

    (bound form) to lay out / to exhibit / to display / (bound form) to narrate / to state / to explain / to tell / old / stale

    Chén

    surname Chen / Chen (c. 1045 – 479 BC), a Zhou dynasty state / Chen (557–589), one of the Southern Dynasties 南朝[Nán Cháo]

  • 谷
    gǔ

    grain / corn / valley

    Gǔ

    surname Gu

  • 子
    zǐ

    son / child / seed / egg / small thing / 1st earthly branch: 11 p.m.–1 a.m., midnight, 11th solar month (7th December to 5th January), year of the rat / viscount, fourth of five orders of nobility 五等爵位[wǔ děng jué wèi] / ancient Chinese compass point: 0° (north) / subsidiary / subordinate / (prefix) sub-

    zi

    noun suffix, as in 椅子[yǐ zi] "chair"

  • 烂
    làn

    soft / mushy / well-cooked and soft / to rot / to decompose / rotten / worn out / chaotic / messy / utterly / thoroughly / crappy / bad

  • 芝
    zhī

    Zoysia pungens

  • 麻
    má

    hemp (variant of 麻[má]) / generic name for hemp, flax etc / hemp or flax fiber for textile materials / sesame / CL:縷|缕[lǚ] / (of materials) rough or coarse / pocked / pitted / to have pins and needles or tingling / to feel numb

    Má

    surname Ma

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.