名落孙山 in English ming2 luo4 Sun1 Shan1 Meaning

Meanings

  • literally (word for word) to fall behind Sun Shan 孫山|孙山[Sun1 Shan1] (who came last in the imperial examination) (idiomatic expression)
  • metaphorically to fail an exam
  • to fall behind (in a competition)

Simplified Characters

名 落 孙 山

Traditional Characters

名 落 孫 山

Pinyin

ming2 luo4 Sun1 Shan1

Literal

Literal explanation, with pronunciation and meaning of each character.

名ming2name 落luo4to leave out 孙sun1surname Sun 山shan1surname Shan