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陰溝裡翻船

简阴沟里翻船 · 繁陰溝裡翻船

Mandarin · pinyin yīn gōu lǐ fān chuán

to meet with unexpected failure (idiom)
to fail miserably (where failure was not expected)

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陰: Look up this written character
溝: Look up this written character
裡: Look up this written character
翻: fān · flip over, upset, capsize
船: chuán · ship, boat, vessel
阴: yīn · 'female' principle; dark; secret
沟: gōu · ditch, drain, narrow waterway
里: lǐ · unit of distance; village; lane; Kangxi radical 166

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

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1–1–3–1–2 · yin1 gou1 li3 fan1 chuan2

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