長江後浪推前浪
简 长江后浪推前浪 · 繁 長江後浪推前浪Meanings
- lit. the rear waves of the Yangtze River drive on those before (idiom)
- fig. the new is constantly replacing the old
- each new generation excels the previous
- (of things) to be constantly evolving
Characters in this entry
- 長
- zhǎng · long; length; excel in; leader; Kangxi radical 168
- 江
- jiāng · large river; the Yangzi; surname
- 後
- hòu · behind, rear, after; descendents
- 浪
- làng · wave; wasteful, reckless
- 推
- tuī · push, expel; push forward
- 前
- qián · in front, forward; preceding
- 长
- zhǎng · long; length; excel in; leader
- 后
- hòu · queen, empress, sovereign; (simp. for 後) behind, rear, after
Explore the spelling
Mandarin tones
2–1–4–4–1–2–4 · Chang2 Jiang1 hou4 lang4 tui1 qian2 lang4
Compare attested words with these syllables ↗Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.
Connected dictionary
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.
長江後浪推前浪 · find source passages ↗ · 长江后浪推前浪 · find source passages ↗
Compare dictionary sources Rime · Wiktionary
Rime Cantonese 粵拼
coeng4 gong1 hau6 long6 teoi1 cin4 long6
Cantonese word readings for 長江後浪推前浪. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.
CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack
Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section
Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.
phrase
- (idiomatic) new things replace old things; the younger (new) generation replaces and surpasses the older (previous) generation
Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack