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弦歌

Mandarin · pinyin xián gē

to sing to a string accompaniment
education (a reference to teaching the people Confucian values by means of song in ancient times)

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Characters in this entry

弦: xián · string; hypotenuse, crescent
歌: gē · song, lyrics; sing, chant; praise

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Mandarin tones

2–1 · xian2 ge1

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Rime Cantonese 粵拼

jin4 go1

Cantonese word readings for 弦歌. 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.

verb

to sing to the accompaniment of zithers (such as the qin or the se); (figuratively) to sing
to educate and civilize (the masses) with rites and music); (figuratively) to educate

noun

the sound of singing and zithers; (figuratively) music
the sound of reading; (figuratively) education

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

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