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鼎足之勢

简鼎足之势 · 繁鼎足之勢

Mandarin · pinyin dǐng zú zhī shì

competition between three rivals
tripartite confrontation

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Characters in this entry

鼎: dǐng · large, three-legged bronze caldron; Kangxi radical 206; hexagram ䷱
足: zú · foot; attain, satisfy, enough; Kangxi radical 156
之: zhī · marks preceding phrase as modifier of following phrase; it, him her, them; go to
勢: Look up this written character
势: shì · power, force; tendency

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

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Mandarin tones

3–2–1–4 · ding3 zu2 zhi1 shi4

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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.

鼎足之勢 · find source passages ↗ · 鼎足之势 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

ding2 zuk1 zi1 sai3

Cantonese word readings for 鼎足之勢. 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) a triumvirate of forces; a tripartite force

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

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