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蟾宮折桂

简蟾宫折桂 · 繁蟾宮折桂

Mandarin · pinyin chán gōng zhé guì

lit. plucking a branch of osmanthus from the Toad Palace (i.e. the moon)
fig. to succeed in the imperial examination

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Characters in this entry

蟾: chán · toad
宮: Look up this written character
折: zhé · break off, snap; bend
桂: guì · cassia or cinnamon
宫: gōng · palace

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Mandarin tones

2–1–2–4 · chan2 gong1 zhe2 gui4

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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

(historical) to pass the imperial examination

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

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