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紅線

简红线 · 繁紅線

Mandarin · pinyin hóng xiàn

red line

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Characters in this entry

紅: hóng · red, vermillion; blush, flush
線: Look up this written character
红: hóng · red, vermillion; blush, flush
线: xiàn · line, thread, wire; clue

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

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Mandarin tones

2–4 · hong2 xian4

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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.

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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.

noun

(literally) red line; red string (Classifier: 條／条 c)
(figurative) red thread of fate, relationship between a predestined love couple (as if tied by an invisible red string); marriage or matchmaking (Classifier: 條／条 c mn)
(figurative, literary) betrothal gifts
(figurative, politics) central and politically correct theme of a piece of writing
(figurative) main thread in literary works
(figurative) red line (a boundary or limit which should not be crossed); bottom line

name

Hong Xian, the protagonist in the Tang dynasty tale The Story of Hong Xian

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

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