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名不虛傳

简名不虚传 · 繁名不虛傳

Mandarin · pinyin míng bù xū chuán

(idiom) to live up to one's famous name; its reputation is well deserved

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Characters in this entry

名: míng · name, rank, title, position
不: bù · no, not; un-; negative prefix
虛: Look up this written character
傳: chuán · summon; propagate, transmit
虚: xū · false
传: chuán · summon; propagate, transmit

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

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Mandarin tones

2–4–1–2 · ming2 bu4 xu1 chuan2

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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.

名不虛傳 · find source passages ↗ · 名不虚传 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

ming4 bat1 heoi1 cyun4

Cantonese word readings for 名不虛傳. 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) to live up to one's illustrious reputation

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

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