tenon and mortise; incompatible; at odds
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 4 examplesnoun
square peg and round hole; incompatibility; mismatch between tenon and mortise
literaryLiterary term referring to the mismatch between a square tenon (枘) and a round mortise (凿). Often used in phrases like 枘凿不入. This entry is a variant of 凿枘 (see page 1699). Note: Traditionally also read as ruìzuò.
Tā他
men们
de的
xìng性
gé格
ruì枘
záo凿
bù不
hé合
，
hěn很
nán难
gòng共
shì事
。
Their personalities are incompatible, making it hard to work together.
Zhè这
liǎng两
zhǒng种
lǐ理
lùn论
ruì枘
záo凿
bù不
rù入
，
wú无
fǎ法
róng融
hé合
。
These two theories are incompatible and cannot be integrated.
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Tā他
de的
xiǎng想
fǎ法
yǔ与
gōng公
sī司
de的
wén文
huà化
ruì枘
záo凿
nán难
tōng通
。
His ideas are at odds with the company culture.
Ruò若
qiǎng强
yǐn引
gǔ古
yì义
yǐ以
shì释
jīn今
shì事
，
nán难
miǎn免
ruì枘
záo凿
zhī之
jī讥
。
If one forcibly applies ancient meanings to interpret modern affairs, one will inevitably invite criticism for mismatched interpretation.