名落孙山

míng luò sūn shān

Rare

Save to list

A add to a list Esc back to results

Definitions

1. lit. to fall behind Sun Shan 孙山sūn shān (who came last in the imperial examination) (idiom)
2. fig. to fail an exam
3. to fall behind (in a competition)

Stop forgetting what you study.
Build recall daily.

Try HanyuGuide's Chinese review system with multiple choice, typed recall, tone-aware practice, and reviews scheduled before memory fades.

Get Yearly · $49.99 / year

Sign up with Google

Did Google show an error? Sorry about that. Use your email below instead.

Continue with Email

By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

Lifetime for $119.99 Try a practice session

Child Words of 名落孙山

• 名 名 míng: name
• 山 山 shān: mountain; hill
• 落 落 là: to leave out
• 落 落 lào: colloquial reading for 落[luò] in certain compounds
• 落 落 luò: to fall or drop
• 孙 孙 sūn: grandson
• 孙山 孙山 sūn shān: Sun Shan, Song Dynasty joker and talented scholar