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一馬當先

简一马当先 · 繁一馬當先

Mandarin · pinyin yī mǎ dāng xiān

(idiom) to take the lead

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Characters in this entry

一: yī · one; a, an; alone
馬: Look up this written character
當: dāng · bear, accept, undertake; just
先: xiān · first, former, previous
马: mǎ · horse; surname; Kangxi radical 187
当: dāng · bear, accept, undertake; just

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

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Mandarin tones

1–3–1–1 · yi1 ma3 dang1 xian1

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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.

一馬當先 · find source passages ↗ · 一马当先 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

jat1 maa5 dong1 sin1

Cantonese word readings for 一馬當先. 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.

phrase

(idiomatic) to gallop at the head; to take the lead; to be in the foremost rank

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

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