明辨是非 (míng biàn shì fēi) — to distinguish right from wrong (idiom)

Definition

A formal four-character idiom meaning 'to clearly distinguish right from wrong.' Used in writing or serious contexts (e.g. law, ethics), not casual speech.

verb
to distinguish right from wrong (idiom)

Examples

  • ，明辨是非。
    Zuò wéi yì míng fǎ guān, bì xū míng biàn shì fēi.
    As a judge, you must distinguish right from wrong.
  • 明辨是非，。
    Jiā zhǎng yào jiào yù hái zi míng biàn shì fēi, zuò chū zhèng què de xuǎn zé.
    Parents should teach their children to distinguish right from wrong and make the right choices.
  • ，明辨是非。
    Zài zhè ge fù zá de shè huì lǐ, wǒ men yào xué huì míng biàn shì fēi.
    In this complex society, we must learn to distinguish right from wrong.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

明辨clearly distinguish
明míngclearly辨biàndistinguish
偏正Modifier + head
是非right and wrong
是shìright非fēiwrong
联合Side by side

明 makes 辨 clear, and 是 and 非 name the two sides to be told apart.

Characters in this word

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

明 combines 日 (sun) and 月 (moon), showing the sun just rising while the moon has not yet set, or two bright objects in the sky, to express brightness.

Open 明 →

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
刀刀dāoknife
Sound part声符shēngfú
辡
辡biàn辨biàn
Same sound today

辨 pairs 刀 (knife) with 辡, made of two knives. The two knives suggest two prisoners accusing each other, giving different accounts that must be sorted out.

Open 辨 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 是 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 非 is drawn from two wings facing opposite directions. It later came to be used for going against or not being.

Open 非 →

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