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驚鴻

简惊鸿 · 繁驚鴻

Mandarin · pinyin jīng hóng

graceful (esp. of female posture)
lithe

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Characters in this entry

驚: Look up this written character
鴻: Look up this written character
惊: jīng · frighten, surprise, startle
鸿: hóng · species of wild swan; vast

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

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Mandarin tones

1–2 · jing1 hong2

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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.

驚鴻 · find source passages ↗ · 惊鸿 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 3 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

ging1 hung4

Cantonese word readings for 驚鴻. 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.

noun

(archaic) a wild goose that is flying away after having been startled (a metaphor for a graceful and elegant woman)
(archaic) a beautiful and graceful woman
(archaic) an elegant and graceful dancer

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

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