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霸

Mandarin · pinyin bà

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霸: bà · rule by might rather than right

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

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Mandarin tones

4 · ba4

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1character link22same-tone records

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

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 · 8 senses · 2 Cantonese readings

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

baa3 · paak3

Cantonese word readings for 霸. 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.

character · Etymology 1

to dominate
(historical) overlord, hegemon
tyrant; despot; bully
hegemony; tyranny
to occupy; to monopolize
(Eastern Min) powerful; awesome; impressive

character · Etymology 2

(archaic, Chinese astronomy) alternative form of 魄 (pò, “illuminated part of the moon”)
(obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) moonlight in the beginning of a lunar month right after the new moon

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

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