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上岸

Mandarin · pinyin shàng àn

to go ashore; to climb ashore
(fig.) to achieve a stable and secure life after a period of struggle (e.g. to get a government job, be admitted to a desirable university, or finally pay off one's debts)

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Characters in this entry

上: shàng · top; superior, highest; go up, send up
岸: àn · bank, shore; beach, coast

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Mandarin tones

4–4 · shang4 an4

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Rime Cantonese 粵拼

soeng5 ngon6

Cantonese word readings for 上岸. 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.

verb · Etymology 1

(verb-object) to go ashore; to climb ashore
(figuratively) to make it, to land (to/in the civil service, graduate school, a new country, etc.)
(figuratively, slang) to leave the pornography or sex work industry and start one's life afresh
(Loudi Xiang, chiefly Buddhism) to pass away

noun · Etymology 2

(Eastern Min) palate; upper jaw; maxilla (of vertebrates)

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

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