听其言而观其行 — “Judge a person not just by what they say, but by what they do”
听其言而观其行 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Judge a person not just by what they say, but by what they do”. Actions speak louder than words. Literally, “Listen to his words and observe his actions”.
听其言而观其行 Pronunciation and Pinyin
听其言而观其行 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 听其言而观其行
Origin and Story of 听其言而观其行
During the Spring and Autumn period, Confucius led his disciples on a tour of various states. After fleeing from the State of Chen to the State of Cai, he was not highly regarded by the ruler of Cai. He often sighed, feeling that he was "eating all day without applying his mind."
One day, he found his disciple Zai Yu sleeping soundly at noon. Infuriated, Confucius declared that Zai Yu was "rotten wood that cannot be carved."
His other disciples quickly came to console him. Confucius then said, "From now on, I will listen to what they say and observe what they do. Let each of them act accordingly." This marked a shift in his approach to judging his students.
Idioms Related to 听其言而观其行
Synonyms of 听其言而观其行
More idioms starting with 听
- tīng听zhī之rèn任zhī之Let things take their course
- tīng听rén人chuān穿bí鼻to be manipulated or controlled by others
- tīng听qí其zì自biàn便let someone act as they wish
- tīng听qí其zì自liú流let it flow naturally
- tīng听qí其zì自rán然Let things take their natural course
- tīng听mìng命yóu由tiān天resign oneself to fate
- tīng听tiān天rèn任mìng命resign oneself to fate
- tīng听tiān天wěi委mìng命resign oneself to fate
- tīng听tiān天ān安mìng命Resign oneself to fate
- tīng听tiān天yóu由mìng命resign oneself to fate
- tīng听wēi微jué决yí疑Observe subtle details to resolve difficult problems
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Open the tool →Questions about 听其言而观其行
What does 听其言而观其行 mean?
听其言而观其行 (tīng qí yán ér guān qí xíng) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Judge a person not just by what they say, but by what they do”.
How do you pronounce 听其言而观其行?
听其言而观其行 is pronounced tīng qí yán ér guān qí xíng in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 听其言而观其行 literally mean?
Literally, 听其言而观其行 means “Listen to his words and observe his actions”. It is used to mean “Judge a person not just by what they say, but by what they do”.
Where does 听其言而观其行 come from?
听其言而观其行 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 听其言而观其行?
听了他的话，还要看他的行动。指不要只听言论，还要看实际行动。