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黔驢技窮

简黔驴技穷 · 繁黔驢技窮

Mandarin · pinyin Qián lǘ jì qióng

to exhaust one's limited abilities (idiom)

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Characters in this entry

黔: qián · black; Guizhou
驢: Look up this written character
技: jì · skill, ability, talent, ingenuity
窮: Look up this written character
驴: lǘ · donkey, ass
穷: qióng · poor, destitute, impoverished

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

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Mandarin tones

2–2–4–2 · Qian2 lu:2 ji4 qiong2

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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.

黔驢技窮 · find source passages ↗ · 黔驴技穷 · find source passages ↗

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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

(figurative) to exhaust one's limited abilities; to be a one-trick pony

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

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