异 曲 同 工

yì qǔ tóng gōngdictionary entry

different tunes played with equal skill (idiom) / different methods leading to the same result / different approach but equally satisfactory outcome

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-b99d1ba2fd922311. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

異曲同工 异曲同工 [yi4 qu3 tong2 gong1] /different tunes played with equal skill (idiom)/different methods leading to the same result/different approach but equally satisfactory outcome/

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: 異曲同工

异
yì
different / other / hetero- / unusual / strange / surprising / to distinguish / to separate / to discriminate
曲
qū
bent / crooked / wrong / fermentation starter / leaven (molds, yeasts or bacteria used in fermenting soy products or brewing etc) / Taiwan pr. [qú]
qǔ
tune / song / CL:支[zhī]
Qū
surname Qu
同
tóng
like / same / similar / together / alike / with
tòng
used in 胡同[hú tòng] / used in 衚衕|胡同[hú tòng]
工
gōng
work / worker / skill / profession / trade / craft / labor

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.