八字沒一撇
简 八字没一撇 · 繁 八字沒一撇Meanings
- lit. there is not even the first stroke of the character 八 bā (idiom)
- fig. things have not even begun to take shape
- no sign of success yet
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Mandarin tones
1–4–2–1–3 · ba1 zi4 mei2 yi1 pie3
Compare attested words with these syllables ↗Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.
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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.
八字沒一撇 · find source passages ↗ · 八字没一撇 · find source passages ↗
Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading
Rime Cantonese 粵拼
baat3 zi6 mut6 jat1 pit3
Cantonese word readings for 八字沒一撇. 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) nothing tangible in sight; things have not even begun to take shape; there's not the slightest sign of success yet
Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history
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