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空口说白话

kōng kǒu shuō bái huàdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
to make empty promises
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-813e12f6466cbd99. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

空口說白話 空口说白话 [kong1 kou3 shuo1 bai2 hua4] /to make empty promises/

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.

Other forms in these source records: 空口說白話

  • 空
    kōng

    empty / air / sky / in vain

    kòng

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

  • 口
    kǒu

    mouth / classifier for things with mouths (people, domestic animals, cannons, wells etc) / classifier for bites or mouthfuls

  • 说
    shuì

    to persuade

    shuō

    to speak / to talk / to say / to explain / to comment / to scold / to tell off / (bound form) theory / doctrine

  • 白
    bái

    white / in vain / free of charge / (bound form) (of facts, the truth, a situation) clear / evident (e.g. 真相大白[zhēn xiàng dà bái]) / (bound form) plain / without additions (e.g. 白飯|白饭[bái fàn]) / (bound form) to explain / to state (e.g. 辯白|辩白[biàn bái]) / (bound form) to give a disdainful look (e.g. 白了他一眼[bái le tā yī yǎn]) / (bound form) vernacular (e.g. 白話|白话[bái huà]) / (bound form) spoken lines in opera (e.g. 念白[niàn bái]) / (bound form) reactionary / anti-communist (e.g. 白區|白区[bái qū])

    Bái

    surname Bai / Bai ethnic group

  • 话
    huà

    dialect / language / spoken words / speech / talk / words / conversation / what sb said / CL:種|种[zhǒng],席[xí],句[jù],口[kǒu],番[fān]

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.