洁身自好 (jié shēn zì hào) — to keep oneself morally pure and uncorrupted (by avoiding bad influences); to mind one's own business and stay out of trouble (sometimes implying selfish aloofness)
Definition
A chengyu with two opposite tones: a positive 'keep oneself pure, avoid corruption' and a negative 'mind one's own business, stay aloof' (sometimes selfish). Context decides which sense is meant.
idiom
to keep oneself morally pure and uncorrupted (by avoiding bad influences)to mind one's own business and stay out of trouble (sometimes implying selfish aloofness)
Examples
- 洁身自好，。Tā yì shēng jié shēn zì hào, cóng bù yǔ tān guān tóng liú hé wū.He kept himself pure all his life and never wallowed in the mire with corrupt officials.
- ，洁身自好，。Gōng sī chū le wèn tí, tā què jié shēn zì hào, bú yuàn chā shǒu bāng máng.When the company ran into trouble, he just minded his own business and refused to help.
- ，洁身自好。Zài fù zá de huán jìng zhōng, jié shēn zì hào shì yì zhǒng nán dé de pǐn zhì.In a complicated environment, keeping oneself pure is a rare quality.
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