DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT
磨刀霍霍
Mandarin · pinyin mó dāo huò huò
Meanings
- (lit.) to sharpen one's sword (idiom)
- (fig.) to prepare to attack; to be getting ready for battle
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Mandarin tones
2–1–4–4 · mo2 dao1 huo4 huo4
Compare attested words with these syllables ↗Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.
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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.