<p>You should know that, the pronunciation of 解铃还须系铃人 is a long lasting debate. If you want to take an exam in mainland China, you must remember the most updated pronunciation in the dictionary. Otherwise, you're free to choose the one you feel the most feasible. The closest meaning of xi and ji as a verb are shown below. Quoted <a href="https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E7%B3%BB/4182746" rel="nofollow noreferrer">百度百科</a>.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>&quot;系（jì）&quot;是单义词，只有一个义项：打结、扣。运用范围很小，只用于“系鞋带”、“系围裙”、“系领带”、“系扣子”、系红领巾等词语中。</p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
<p>“系（xì）”是多义词，在《现代汉语词典》上有8个义项：</p>
<p>...</p>
<p>(7) 拴、绑、束缚：系马、系缚、不系之舟</p>
<p>...</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-11-20T03:44:00.543Z
2020-11-20T03:59:02.503Z
2020-11-20T03:59:02.503Z
Frank Mi
<p>With regards to the idiom:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>解铃还须<strong>系</strong>铃人<br />
jiě líng hái xū <strong>xì</strong> líng rén<br />
<sub><a href="https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?page=worddict&amp;wdrst=0&amp;wdqb=%E8%A7%A3%E9%93%83%E8%BF%98%E9%A1%BB%E7%B3%BB%E9%93%83%E4%BA%BA" rel="nofollow noreferrer">CC-CEDICT</a>: lit. whoever hung the bell on the tiger's neck must untie it (idiom) / fig. whoever started the trouble should end it</sub></p>
</blockquote>
<p>I'm wondering why 系 is pronounced xì and not jì in this idiom.  I'm accustomed to hearing jì when fastening things, e.g., <a href="https://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/23931/whats-the-difference-between-%E6%89%A3%E5%A5%BD%E5%AE%89%E5%85%A8%E5%B8%A6-k%C3%B2uh%C7%8Eo-%C4%81nqu%C3%A1nd%C3%A0i-and-%E7%B3%BB%E5%A5%BD%E5%AE%89%E5%85%A8%E5%B8%A6-j%C3%ACh%C7%8Eo-%C4%81nqu%C3%A1nd%C3%A0">上车请系好安全带</a>, so I would expect 系 to be jì when fastening the bell to the tiger's neck.  Moreover, the traditional characters 解鈴還須<strong>繫</strong>鈴人 uses 繫 which <a href="https://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/26606/when-is-%E7%B3%BB-pronounced-x%C3%AC-xi-and-when-is-it-pronounced-j%C3%AC">indicates it should be pronounced jì</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Question</strong>: Why is 系 pronounced xì (not jì) in the idiom 解铃还须系铃人?</p>

<pronunciation><idioms>
Why is 系 pronounced xì (not jì) in the idiom 解铃还须系铃人?
# Why is 系 pronounced xì (not jì) in the idiom 解铃还须系铃人?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2020-11-20)

With regards to the idiom:

> 解铃还须**系**铃人  
> jiě líng hái xū **xì** líng rén  
> [CC-CEDICT](https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?page=worddict&wdrst=0&wdqb=%E8%A7%A3%E9%93%83%E8%BF%98%E9%A1%BB%E7%B3%BB%E9%93%83%E4%BA%BA): lit. whoever hung the bell on the tiger's neck must untie it (idiom) / fig. whoever started the trouble should end it

I'm wondering why 系 is pronounced xì and not jì in this idiom. I'm accustomed to hearing jì when fastening things, e.g., [上车请系好安全带](https://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/23931/whats-the-difference-between-%E6%89%A3%E5%A5%BD%E5%AE%89%E5%85%A8%E5%B8%A6-k%C3%B2uh%C7%8Eo-%C4%81nqu%C3%A1nd%C3%A0i-and-%E7%B3%BB%E5%A5%BD%E5%AE%89%E5%85%A8%E5%B8%A6-j%C3%ACh%C7%8Eo-%C4%81nqu%C3%A1nd%C3%A0), so I would expect 系 to be jì when fastening the bell to the tiger's neck. Moreover, the traditional characters 解鈴還須**繫**鈴人 uses 繫 which [indicates it should be pronounced jì](https://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/26606/when-is-%E7%B3%BB-pronounced-x%C3%AC-xi-and-when-is-it-pronounced-j%C3%AC).

**Question**: Why is 系 pronounced xì (not jì) in the idiom 解铃还须系铃人?

**Tags:** pronunciation, idioms


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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2020-11-20. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

You should know that, the pronunciation of 解铃还须系铃人 is a long lasting debate. If you want to take an exam in mainland China, you must remember the most updated pronunciation in the dictionary. Otherwise, you're free to choose the one you feel the most feasible. The closest meaning of xi and ji as a verb are shown below. Quoted [百度百科](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E7%B3%BB/4182746).

> "系（jì）"是单义词，只有一个义项：打结、扣。运用范围很小，只用于“系鞋带”、“系围裙”、“系领带”、“系扣子”、系红领巾等词语中。

> “系（xì）”是多义词，在《现代汉语词典》上有8个义项：
>
> ...
>
> (7) 拴、绑、束缚：系马、系缚、不系之舟
>
> ...


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