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異曲同工

简异曲同工 · 繁異曲同工

Mandarin · pinyin yì qǔ tóng gōng

different tunes played with equal skill (idiom)
different methods leading to the same result
different approach but equally satisfactory outcome

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Characters in this entry

異: Look up this written character
曲: qū · crooked, bent; wrong, false
同: tóng · same, similar; together with
工: gōng · labor, work; worker, laborer
异: yì · different, unusual, strange

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

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Mandarin tones

4–3–2–1 · yi4 qu3 tong2 gong1

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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.

異曲同工 · find source passages ↗ · 异曲同工 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

ji6 kuk1 tung4 gung1

Cantonese word readings for 異曲同工. 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) different approaches but equally satisfactory results

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

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