相見恨晚
简 相见恨晚 · 繁 相見恨晚Meanings
- to regret not having met earlier (idiom); It is nice to meet you finally.
- It feels like we have known each other all along.
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Mandarin tones
1–4–4–3 · xiang1 jian4 hen4 wan3
Compare attested words with these syllables ↗Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.
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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.
相見恨晚 · find source passages ↗ · 相见恨晚 · find source passages ↗
Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading
Rime Cantonese 粵拼
soeng1 gin3 han6 maan5
Cantonese word readings for 相見恨晚. 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) to regret not having met earlier; if only we had met earlier (used to express the happiness when meeting with someone for the first time)
Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history
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