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臨渴穿井

简临渴穿井 · 繁臨渴穿井

Mandarin · pinyin lín kě chuān jǐng

lit. face thirst and dig a well (idiom); fig. not to make adequate provision
to act when it is too late

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Characters in this entry

臨: Look up this written character
渴: kě · thirsty, parched; yearn, pine
穿: chuān · penetrate, pierce, drill; wear
井: jǐng · well, mine shaft, pit; surname; 22nd lunar mansion, determinative star μ Geminorum (Tejat); hexagram ䷯
临: lín · draw near, approach; descend

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

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Mandarin tones

2–3–1–3 · lin2 ke3 chuan1 jing3

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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.

臨渴穿井 · find source passages ↗ · 临渴穿井 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

lam4 hot3 cyun1 zeng2

Cantonese word readings for 臨渴穿井. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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