DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

高分低能

Mandarin · pinyin gāo fēn dī néng

high in score but low in ability (as a result of teaching to the test)

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

高: gāo · high, tall; lofty, elevated; Kangxi radical 189
分: fēn · divide; small unit of time etc.
低: dī · low; to lower, hang, bend, bow
能: néng · to be able; can, permitted to; ability

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

1–1–1–2 · gao1 fen1 di1 neng2

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

4character links

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.

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.

高分低能 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

phrase

(education, of a student) high in score but low in ability

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

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack