濫竽充數
简 滥竽充数 · 繁 濫竽充數Meanings
- lit. to play the yu 竽 mouth organ to make up numbers (idiom); fig. to make up the numbers with inferior products
- to masquerade as having an ability
- token member of a group
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Mandarin tones
4–2–1–4 · lan4 yu2 chong1 shu4
Compare attested words with these syllables ↗Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.
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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.
濫竽充數 · find source passages ↗ · 滥竽充数 · find source passages ↗
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Rime Cantonese 粵拼
laam5 jyu1 cung1 sou3
Cantonese word readings for 濫竽充數. 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
- (figurative, derogatory or humble) to fill a position without having the necessary qualifications; to be a token member of a group; to masquerade as having an ability; to sell seconds at best-quality prices
Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history
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