先拔头筹 (xiān bá tóu chóu) — to take the lead, to be the first to succeed (in a competitive context)

Definition

A chengyu meaning 'to be first, to take the lead' in a competition or contest. Used like a verb phrase — about winning the first advantage, not just participating early.

verb
to take the leadto be the first to succeed (in a competitive context)

Examples

  • 先拔头筹，。
    Zhè jiā gōng sī zài rén gōng zhì néng lǐng yù xiān bá tóu chóu, yíng dé le dà liàng tóu zī.
    This company took the lead in the field of AI and won a lot of investment.
  • 先拔头筹，。
    Tā zài bǐ sài zhōng xiān bá tóu chóu, dì yī gè chōng guò le zhōng diǎn xiàn.
    He took the lead in the race and was the first to cross the finish line.
  • 先拔头筹，。
    Wèi le xiān bá tóu chóu, tuán duì rì yè bù tíng dì yán fā xīn chǎn pǐn.
    In order to take the lead, the team developed new products day and night without stopping.

Origin

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

先 combines 止 (foot) and 儿 (person) to show someone moving forward.

Open 先 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
犮
犮bá拔bá
Same sound today

In 拔, the left side 扌 is a hand and the right side 犮 gives the sound; the shape pictures a hand pulling.

Open 拔 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 頭; 头 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèhead
Sound part声符shēngfú
豆
豆dòu頭tóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 頭 shows 頁, meaning head, beside 豆 as a sound component; the simplified 头 is a later shorthand.

Open 头 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 籌; 筹 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
竹竹zhúbamboo
Sound part声符shēngfú
壽
壽shòu籌chóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 籌 has 竹 (bamboo) on top and 壽 below as the sound part; the simplified 筹 is a later shorthand.

Open 筹 →

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