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中庸之道

zhōng yōng zhī dàodictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
doctrine of the mean / moderation in all things
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-f89715ecdc0aeba3. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

中庸之道 中庸之道 [zhong1 yong1 zhi1 dao4] /doctrine of the mean/moderation in all things/

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.

  • 中
    zhōng

    within / among / in / middle / center / while (doing sth) / during / (dialect) OK / all right

    zhòng

    to hit (a target) / to be struck by (a bullet, illness etc) / to win (a prize or lottery)

    Zhōng

    (bound form) China / Chinese / surname Zhong

  • 庸
    yōng

    ordinary / to use

  • 之
    zhī

    (possessive particle, literary equivalent of 的[de]) / him / her / it

  • 道
    dào

    road / path (CL:條|条[tiáo],股[gǔ]) / (bound form) way / reason / principle / (bound form) a skill / an art / a specialization / (Daoism) the Way / the Dao / to say (introducing a direct quotation, as in a novel) / (bound form) to express / to extend (polite words) / classifier for long thin things (rivers, cracks, shadows etc), barriers (walls, doors etc), questions (in an exam etc), commands, courses in a meal, steps in a process / (old) circuit (administrative division)

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.