LookupMandarin · 繁體 · English

ChineseCharactersMeanings inMandarin–English · CC-CEDICTSources ↗

DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

黃袍加身

简黄袍加身 · 繁黃袍加身

Mandarin · pinyin huáng páo jiā shēn

lit. to take the yellow gown (idiom)
fig. to be made emperor
to take the crown

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

黃: huáng · yellow; surname; Kangxi radical 201
袍: páo · long gown, robe, cloak
加: jiā · add to, increase, augment
身: shēn · body; trunk, hull; Kangxi radical 158
黄: huáng · yellow; surname

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

2–2–1–1 · huang2 pao2 jia1 shen1

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

5character links

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 2 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

wong4 pou4 gaa1 san1

Pleco · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Word reading; meanings not aligned.

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

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

phrase

(idiomatic) to stage a coup d'état; overthrow a government; take the throne
(idiomatic) to be crowned (as a monarch, ruler, winner, champion, etc.)

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

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack