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空前絕後

简空前绝后 · 繁空前絕後

Mandarin · pinyin kōng qián jué hòu

unprecedented and never to be duplicated
the first and the last
unmatched
unique

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Characters in this entry

空: kōng · empty, hollow, bare, deserted
前: qián · in front, forward; preceding
絕: Look up this written character
後: hòu · behind, rear, after; descendents
绝: jué · to cut, sever, break off, terminate
后: hòu · queen, empress, sovereign; (simp. for 後) behind, rear, after

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

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Mandarin tones

1–2–2–4 · kong1 qian2 jue2 hou4

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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.

空前絕後 · find source passages ↗ · 空前绝后 · find source passages ↗

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Rime Cantonese 粵拼

hung1 cin4 zyut6 hau6

Cantonese word readings for 空前絕後. 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) unprecedented and never to be duplicated; the first and the last; unmatched; unique

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

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