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雪泥鸿爪

xuě ní hóng zhǎodictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
a goose's footprint in the snow / vestiges of the past (idiom) / the fleeting nature of human life (idiom)
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-fc82165759268216. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

雪泥鴻爪 雪泥鸿爪 [xue3 ni2 hong2 zhao3] /a goose's footprint in the snow/vestiges of the past (idiom)/the fleeting nature of human life (idiom)/

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: 雪泥鴻爪

  • 雪
    xuě

    snow / CL:場|场[cháng] / (literary) to wipe away (a humiliation etc)

    Xuě

    surname Xue

  • 泥
    ní

    mud / clay / paste / pulp

    nì

    restrained

  • 鸿
    hóng

    eastern bean goose / great / large

  • 爪
    zhǎo

    foot of a bird or animal / paw / claws / talons

    zhuǎ

    (coll.) foot of an animal or bird / (coll.) foot supporting a cooking pot etc

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.