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翻空出奇

fān kōng chū qídictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
to overturn empty convention, and display originality (idiom) / new and different ideas
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-74e2a78c236373a8. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

翻空出奇 翻空出奇 [fan1 kong1 chu1 qi2] /to overturn empty convention, and display originality (idiom); new and different ideas/

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.

  • 翻
    fān

    to turn over / to flip over / to overturn / to rummage through / to translate / to decode / to double / to climb over or into / to cross

  • 空
    kōng

    empty / air / sky / in vain

    kòng

    to empty / vacant / unoccupied / space / leisure / free time

  • 出
    chū

    to go out / to come out / to arise / to occur / to produce / to yield / to go beyond / to exceed / (used after a verb to indicate an outward direction or a positive result) / classifier for dramas, plays, operas etc

  • 奇
    jī

    odd (number)

    qí

    strange / odd / weird / wonderful / surprisingly / unusually

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.