DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

無言可對

简无言可对 · 繁無言可對

Mandarin · pinyin wú yán kě duì

unable to reply (idiom); left speechless
at a loss for words

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

無: Look up this written character
言: yán · words, speech; speak, say; Kangxi radical 149
可: kě · may, can, -able; possibly
對: duì · correct, right; facing, opposed
无: wú · negative, no, not; Kangxi radical 71
对: duì · correct, right; facing, opposed

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

2–2–3–4 · wu2 yan2 ke3 dui4

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.

無言可對 · find source passages ↗ · 无言可对 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

mou4 jin4 ho2 deoi3

Cantonese word readings for 無言可對. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack