The New Dictionary.
Search dictionary
Chinese/Dictionary entry

表面文章

biǎo miàn wén zhāngdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
superficial show / going through the motions
Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-73133edc38cabd39. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

表面文章 表面文章 [biao3 mian4 wen2 zhang1] /superficial show/going through the motions/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

  • 表
    biǎo

    exterior surface / family relationship via females / to show (one's opinion) / a model / a table (listing information) / a form / a meter (measuring sth) / watch (timepiece) / meter / gauge

  • 面
    miàn

    face / side / surface / aspect / top / classifier for objects with flat surfaces such as drums, mirrors, flags etc / flour / noodles / (of food) soft (not crunchy) / (slang) (of a person) ineffectual / spineless

  • 文
    wén

    language / culture / writing / formal / literary / gentle / (old) classifier for coins / Kangxi radical 67

    Wén

    surname Wen

  • 章
    zhāng

    chapter / section / clause / movement (of symphony) / seal / badge / regulation / order

    Zhāng

    surname Zhang

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.