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先兆

Mandarin · pinyin xiān zhào

omen

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先: xiān · first, former, previous
兆: zhào · omen; million; mega; also trillion. China = million; Japan and Taiwan = trillion

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

1–4 · xian1 zhao4

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Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 2 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

sin1 siu6

Cantonese word readings for 先兆. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

noun

harbinger; forewarning; omen; premonition; augury; portent
(medicine) aura

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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