清代推崇程朱理學者、不宗程朱理學者多以《中庸》為子思所作。還有清人認為《中庸》與其他儒家經典的義理相同或相通。有些清人既從《四書》學的視域來看待《中庸》，又有意識地避開朱熹《中庸章句》的影響，甚至對朱熹《中庸章句》的分章、義理提出質疑，使《中庸》詮釋逐漸從理學回歸經學。王夫之、李光地、戴震等人利用《中庸》闡發理學思想，並有創獲。清人善於利用《中庸》闡發實學思想，包括以理釋《中庸》，對《中庸》所記名物典制加以考證，以《中庸》為資源闡發人生和社會理想。

In the Qing Dynasty, those who praised Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism or those who did not praise Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism believed that the Doctrine of the Mean was Zisi’s work. Others in the Qing Dynasty thought that the Doctrine of the Mean meant the same thing as other Confucian classics. Some people in the Qing Dynasty looked at the Doctrine of the Mean from the perspective of the learning of Four Books. They doubted Zhu Xi's the Doctrine of the Mean Chapter and Sentences. Their approach was to gradually return the interpretation of the the Doctrine of the Mean from Neo-Confucianism to Confucianism. Wang Fuzhi, Li Guangdi, Dai Zhen and others used the the Doctrine of the Mean to expound practicallearning.