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唯利是图 (wéi lì shì tú) — (idiom) to be solely profit-seeking; to put profit before everything else

Definition

A strongly negative idiom meaning someone puts profit above all else, used to criticize a person or organization. Like 自私, it describes acting purely for self-interest, but here the focus is specifically on money and gain.

idiom
to be solely profit-seekingto put profit before everything else

Examples

  • 唯利是图，。
    Tā zhè ge rén wéi lì shì tú, zhī kàn zhòng qián.
    He is such a profit-seeker; he only cares about money.
  • 唯利是图，。
    Nà jiā gōng sī wéi lì shì tú, bù guān xīn chǎn pǐn zhì liàng.
    That company is solely profit-seeking and doesn't care about product quality.
  • 唯利是图，。
    Zuò shēng yi bù néng wéi lì shì tú, fǒu zé huì shī qù kè hù.
    You cannot be solely profit-seeking in business, or you will lose customers.

Origin

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
隹
隹zhuī唯wěi
Same sound today

The shape pairs 口 (mouth) with 隹, used for its sound. The evidence says this form originally wrote a word for a bird's cry and was later borrowed for abstract meanings.

Open 唯 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

利 combines 禾 (grain) and 刀 (knife), showing a knife used to cut grain.

Open 利 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 是 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 圖; 图 is its simplified writing.

  • 囗囗wéiwalled city
  • 啚啚bǐ

The traditional form 圖 pairs 囗, a walled city, with 啚, an early form meaning remote areas or territory. The simplified 图 is a later abbreviation.

Open 图 →
Appears in
Business & CommerceIdioms & Set Phrases

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