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人不可貌相，海水不可斗量

rén bù kě mào xiàng , hǎi shuǐ bù kě dǒu liángdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
you can't judge a person by appearance, just as you can't measure the sea with a pint pot (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-ed34712a81ae6d53. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

人不可貌相，海水不可斗量 人不可貌相，海水不可斗量 [ren2 bu4 ke3 mao4 xiang4 , hai3 shui3 bu4 ke3 dou3 liang2] /you can't judge a person by appearance, just as you can't measure the sea with a pint pot (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.

  • 人
  • 不
    bù

    no / not so / (bound form) not / un-

  • 可
    kě

    (prefix) can / may / able to / -able / to approve / to permit / to suit / (particle used for emphasis) certainly / very / but / however

    kè

    used in 可汗[kè hán]

  • 貌
    mào

    (bound form) appearance / looks / outward form

  • 相
    xiāng

    each other / one another / mutually / fret on the neck of a pipa 琵琶[pí pa] (a fret on the soundboard is called a 品[pǐn])

    xiàng

    appearance / portrait / picture / government minister / (physics) phase / (literary) to appraise (esp. by scrutinizing physical features) / to read sb's fortune (by physiognomy, palmistry etc)

    Xiāng

    surname Xiang

  • 海
    hǎi

    ocean / sea / CL:個|个[gè],片[piàn] / great number of people or things / (dialect) numerous

    Hǎi

    surname Hai

  • 水
    shuǐ

    water / (after a name) ... River / to swim (used mostly in 會水|会水[huì shuǐ] and 水性[shuǐ xìng]) / (coll.) lacking in substance / shoddy / (bound form) additional cost / extra income / classifier for washings of a garment

    Shuǐ

    surname Shui / Shui ethnic group

  • 不
    bù

    no / not so / (bound form) not / un-

  • 可
    kě

    (prefix) can / may / able to / -able / to approve / to permit / to suit / (particle used for emphasis) certainly / very / but / however

    kè

    used in 可汗[kè hán]

  • 斗
    dǒu

    dry measure for grain equal to ten 升[shēng] or one-tenth of a 石[dàn] / decaliter / peck / cup or dipper shaped object

    dòu

    to fight / to struggle / to condemn / to censure / to contend / to put together / coming together

    Dǒu

    abbr. for the Big Dipper constellation 北斗星[Běi dǒu xīng]

  • 量
    liáng

    to measure

    liàng

    capacity / quantity / amount / to estimate / abbr. for 量詞|量词[liàng cí], classifier (in Chinese grammar) / measure word

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.