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下里巴人

Mandarin · pinyin xià lǐ bā rén

folk songs of the state of Chu 楚國 Chǔ guó
popular art forms (contrasted with 陽春白雪 yáng chūn bái xuě, highbrow art forms)

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Characters in this entry

下: xià · under, underneath, below; down; inferior; bring down
里: lǐ · unit of distance; village; lane; Kangxi radical 166
巴: bā · greatly desire, anxiously hope
人: rén · man; people; mankind; someone else

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

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Mandarin tones

4–3–1–2 · xia4 li3 ba1 ren2

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 3 senses

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

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

phrase

(idiomatic) vulgar or low-quality literature, music or art
(figurative) popular literature, music or art
(humble) one's own artwork or composition

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

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