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先來後到

简先来后到 · 繁先來後到

Mandarin · pinyin xiān lái hòu dào

(idiom) in order of arrival; first come, first served

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Characters in this entry

先: xiān · first, former, previous
來: lái · come, coming; return, returning
後: hòu · behind, rear, after; descendents
到: dào · go to, arrive, been to
来: lái · come, coming; return, returning
后: hòu · queen, empress, sovereign; (simp. for 後) behind, rear, after

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

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Mandarin tones

1–2–4–4 · xian1 lai2 hou4 dao4

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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.

先來後到 · find source passages ↗ · 先来后到 · find source passages ↗

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Rime Cantonese 粵拼

sin1 loi4 hau6 dou3

Cantonese word readings for 先來後到. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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