舉頭三尺有神明

Chinese
three
 
a Chinese foot (M); one-third of a metre; a ruler
a Chinese foot (M); one-third of a metre; a ruler; a note musical note on traditional Chinese scale
 
to have; there is; there are
to have; there is; there are; to exist; to be
 deity; god
trad. (舉頭三尺有神明) 舉頭 三 尺 有 神明
simp. (举头三尺有神明) 举头 三 尺 有 神明
Literally: “There are gods three feet above your head”.

Pronunciation

  • Mandarin
    • (Standard Chinese)+
      • Hanyu Pinyin: jǔtóu sān chǐ yǒu shénmíng [Phonetic: jǔtóusānchíyǒushénmíng]
      • Zhuyin: ㄐㄩˇ ㄊㄡˊ ㄙㄢ ㄔˇ ㄧㄡˇ ㄕㄣˊ ㄇㄧㄥˊ
      • Tongyong Pinyin: jyǔtóu san chǐh yǒu shénmíng
      • Wade–Giles: chü3-tʻou2 san1 chʻih3 yu3 shên2-ming2
      • Yale: jyǔ-tóu sān chř yǒu shén-míng
      • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: jeutour san chyy yeou shernming
      • Palladius: цзюйтоу сань чи ю шэньмин (czjujtou sanʹ či ju šɛnʹmin)
      • Sinological IPA (key): /t͡ɕy²¹⁴⁻²¹ tʰoʊ̯³⁵ sän⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩²¹⁴⁻³⁵ joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂən³⁵ miŋ³⁵/
  • Cantonese

Proverb

舉頭三尺有神明

  1. The gods are watching, so don't think you can get away with anything.

Synonyms
Dialectal synonyms of 舉頭三尺有神明 (“The gods are watching from above.”) [map]
Variety Location Words
Formal (Written Standard Chinese) 舉頭三尺有神明
Mandarin Taiwan 舉頭三尺有神明
Cantonese Hong Kong 舉頭三尺有神明
Southern Min Xiamen 攑頭三尺有神明
Quanzhou 攑頭三尺有神明
Zhangzhou 攑頭三尺有神明
Tainan 攑頭三尺有神明

See also
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