DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

有頭有臉

简有头有脸 · 繁有頭有臉

Mandarin · pinyin yǒu tóu yǒu liǎn

(idiom) (of a person) to be highly respected; to enjoy prestige

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

有: yǒu · have, own, possess; exist
頭: tóu · head; top; chief, first; boss
臉: liǎn · face; cheek; reputation
头: tóu · head; top; chief, first; boss
脸: liǎn · face; cheek; reputation

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

3–2–3–3 · you3 tou2 you3 lian3

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.

有頭有臉 · find source passages ↗ · 有头有脸 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

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

phrase

(idiomatic) having fame and prestige; famous; respected; prestigious

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

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