DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

半斤八兩

简半斤八两 · 繁半斤八兩

Mandarin · pinyin bàn jīn bā liǎng

not much to choose between the two
tweedledum and tweedledee

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

半: bàn · half
斤: jīn · a catty (approximately 600 g); an axe; keen, shrewd; Kangxi radical 69
八: bā · eight; all around, all sides
兩: liǎng · two, both, pair, couple; ounce
两: liǎng · two, both, pair, couple; ounce

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

4–1–1–3 · ban4 jin1 ba1 liang3

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

5character 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.

半斤八兩 · find source passages ↗ · 半斤八两 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

bun3 gan1 baat3 loeng2

Cantonese word readings for 半斤八兩. 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

(chiefly derogatory) six of one, half a dozen of the other; not much to choose between the two

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

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