听其言观其行 tīng qí yán guān qí xíng

DEFINITIONS

  1. hear what he says and observe what he does (idiom, from Analects); judge a person not by his words, but by his actions

CHARACTERS

听 tīng hear; understand; obey, comply
其 qí his, her, its, their; that
言 yán words, speech; speak, say
观 guān see, observe, view; appearance
其 qí his, her, its, their; that
行 xíng go; walk; move, travel; circulate