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莫測高深

简莫测高深 · 繁莫測高深

Mandarin · pinyin mò cè gāo shēn

enigmatic
beyond one's depth
unfathomable

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Characters in this entry

莫: mò · do not, is not, can not; negative
測: Look up this written character
高: gāo · high, tall; lofty, elevated; Kangxi radical 189
深: shēn · deep; depth; far; very, extreme
测: cè · measure, estimate, conjecture

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

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Mandarin tones

4–4–1–1 · mo4 ce4 gao1 shen1

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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.

莫測高深 · find source passages ↗ · 莫测高深 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

mok6 cak1 gou1 sam1

Cantonese word readings for 莫測高深. 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) too profound to be understood; enigmatic; unfathomable

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

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