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潛臺詞

简潜台词 · 繁潛臺詞

Mandarin · pinyin qián tái cí

unspoken dialogue in a play, left for the audience to infer; subtext
(fig.) implicit assertion

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Characters in this entry

潛: Look up this written character
臺: Look up this written character
詞: Look up this written character
潜: qián · hide; hidden, secret, latent
台: tái · platform; unit; term of address
词: cí · words; phrase, expression

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

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Mandarin tones

2–2–2 · qian2 tai2 ci2

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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.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 2 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

cim4 toi4 ci4

Cantonese word readings for 潛臺詞. 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.

noun

(opera) unspoken lines in a play (left for the audience to understand)
(figurative) subtext; connotation; undertone

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

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