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鳳毛麟角

简凤毛麟角 · 繁鳳毛麟角

Mandarin · pinyin fèng máo lín jiǎo

lit. as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns (idiom)
fig. few and far between

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Characters in this entry

鳳: Look up this written character
毛: máo · hair, fur, feathers; coarse
麟: lín · female of Chinese unicorn
角: jiǎo · horn; angle, corner; point; Kangxi radical 148; 1st lunar mansion, determinative star Spica
凤: fèng · male phoenix; symbol of joy

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

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Mandarin tones

4–2–2–3 · feng4 mao2 lin2 jiao3

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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.

鳳毛麟角 · find source passages ↗ · 凤毛麟角 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

fung6 mou4 leon4 gok3

Cantonese word readings for 鳳毛麟角. 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) rarity of rarities; rare treasures or talents; things that are few and far between

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

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