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後來居上

简后来居上 · 繁後來居上

Mandarin · pinyin hòu lái jū shàng

(idiom) see 後來者居上 hòu lái zhě jū shàng

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Characters in this entry

後: hòu · behind, rear, after; descendents
來: lái · come, coming; return, returning
居: jū · live, dwell, reside, sit
上: shàng · top; superior, highest; go up, send up
后: hòu · queen, empress, sovereign; (simp. for 後) behind, rear, after
来: lái · come, coming; return, returning

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

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Mandarin tones

4–2–1–4 · hou4 lai2 ju1 shang4

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6character links1source reference

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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.

後來居上 · find source passages ↗ · 后来居上 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

hau6 loi4 geoi1 soeng5

Cantonese word readings for 後來居上. 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) the up-and-coming youngster outstrips the older generation; the pupil surpasses the master

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

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