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防患未然

Mandarin · pinyin fáng huàn wèi rán

to prevent troubles before the event (idiom)
to forestall
to nip sth in the bud

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Characters in this entry

防: fáng · defend; prevent; embankment
患: huàn · suffer, worry about; suffering
未: wèi · not yet; eighth earthly branch
然: rán · yes, certainly; pledge, promise

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

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Mandarin tones

2–4–4–2 · fang2 huan4 wei4 ran2

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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

fong4 waan6 mei6 jin4

Cantonese word readings for 防患未然. 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) to take preventative measures before a disaster occurs; to prevent trouble before it happens

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

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