明哲保身
míng zhé bǎo shēn
to keep out of trouble to protect oneself, at the expense of principle
Character by character
明míng
wise
wise
哲zhé
discerning
discerning
保bǎo
protect
protect
身shēn
self
self
Example
开会时大家都看到了问题，可为了明哲保身，谁也不肯先开口。
Everyone at the meeting could see the problem, but to stay out of trouble no one would speak first.
Tone: negative (criticism).
Usage and origin
From the Book of Songs (既明且哲，以保其身), where it was praise for a wise minister. Today it is almost always a reproach: keeping quiet or standing aside when one should speak up.
Learn this in Lesson 252 · HSK 9+: 林语堂《吾国与吾民》 (Lin Yutang’s My Country and My People)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
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