DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

一發而不可收

简一发而不可收 · 繁一發而不可收

Mandarin · pinyin yī fā ér bù kě shōu

to be impossible to stop once started

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

一: yī · one; a, an; alone
發: fā · issue, dispatch, send out, emit
而: ér · and; and then; and yet; but; Kangxi radical 126
不: bù · no, not; un-; negative prefix
可: kě · may, can, -able; possibly
收: shōu · gather together, collect; harvest
发: fā · issue, dispatch, send out; hair

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

1–1–2–4–3–1 · yi1 fa1 er2 bu4 ke3 shou1

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

7character links

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

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

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.

一發而不可收 · find source passages ↗ · 一发而不可收 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗