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起死回生

Mandarin · pinyin qǐ sǐ huí shēng

to rise from the dead (idiom); fig. an unexpected recovery

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Characters in this entry

起: qǐ · rise, stand up; go up; begin
死: sǐ · die; dead; death
回: huí · return, turn around; a time
生: shēng · life, living, lifetime; birth

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Mandarin tones

3–3–2–1 · qi3 si3 hui2 sheng1

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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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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

hei2 sei2 wui4 sang1

Cantonese word readings for 起死回生. 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

(chiefly of a medical doctor) to bring the dying back to life; to turn around a hopeless situation

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

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