DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

千慮一失

简千虑一失 · 繁千慮一失

Mandarin · pinyin qiān lǜ yī shī

reflect a thousand times and you can still make a mistake (idiom); to err is human

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

千: qiān · thousand; many, numerous; very; (Cant.) a cheater, swindler
慮: Look up this written character
一: yī · one; a, an; alone
失: shī · lose; make mistake, neglect
虑: lǜ · be concerned, worry about

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

1–4–1–1 · qian1 lu:4 yi1 shi1

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

4character links

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.

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.

千慮一失 · find source passages ↗ · 千虑一失 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

cin1 leoi6 jat1 sat1

Cantonese word readings for 千慮一失. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

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

phrase

(idiomatic) even a wise person sometimes makes a mistake; no one is always free from errors

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

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack