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不可勝言

简不可胜言 · 繁不可勝言

Mandarin · pinyin bù kě shèng yán

inexpressible (idiom)
beyond description

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Characters in this entry

不: bù · no, not; un-; negative prefix
可: kě · may, can, -able; possibly
勝: shèng · victory; excel, be better than
言: yán · words, speech; speak, say; Kangxi radical 149
胜: shèng · victory; excel, be better than

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

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Mandarin tones

4–3–4–2 · bu4 ke3 sheng4 yan2

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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.

不可勝言 · find source passages ↗ · 不可胜言 · find source passages ↗

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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) cannot be expressed in words; there are no words to describe it

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

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