Author: nlt

天經地義 (Tiān jīng dì yì) (1) lit. heaven’s law and earth’s principle (idiom); fig. right and proper(2) the norms of Heaven and Earth(3) right and unalterable(4) a matter of course From https://baike.baidu.hk/item/%E5%A4%A9%E7%B6%93%E5%9C%B0%E7%BE%A9/14314 In 520 B.C., King Jǐng of Zhou (周景王), Ji Gui, passed away. Based on imperial rules, his eldest son Ji Meng (姬猛), who…

太公釣魚 (Tài gōng diào yú) (1) Grand Duke Jiang fishes – those who are willing jump at the bait (姜太公釣魚——願者上鉤);(2) like the fish rising to Grand Duke Jiang’s hookless and baitless line;(3) a willing victim letting himself be caught on his own will. From https://baike.baidu.hk/item/%E5%A7%9C%E5%A4%AA%E5%85%AC%E9%87%A3%E9%AD%9A%EF%BC%8C%E9%A1%98%E8%80%85%E4%B8%8A%E9%88%8E/6772714 Jiang Taigong (姜太公) was also known as Jiang Shang (姜尚),…

上下其手 (Shàng xià qí shǒu) (1) to raise and lower one’s hand (idiom); to signal as conspiratorial hint(2) fig. conspiring to defraud From https://baike.baidu.hk/item/%E4%B8%8A%E4%B8%8B%E5%85%B6%E6%89%8B/603393 This story comes from Zuo Zhuan – Duke Xiang’s Twenty-Sixth Year (左傳．襄公二十六年) In the thirteenth year of the reign of King Kang of Chu, the State of Chu sent troops to…

尸位素餐 (Shī wèi sù cān) (1) to hold a sinecure(2) holding on to a high position and deriving benefits from it without toiling even for a single day.(3) self-deprecating expression, indicating that one has failed to carry out one’s duties. From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=1464 The idiom comes from the combination of 尸位 (holding on to one’s sinecure)…

三折其肱 (Sān zhé qí gōng) Lit. One’s arm had been broken three times Fig. After experiencing something multiple times, one would become an expert at it. From https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E4%B8%89%E6%8A%98%E5%85%B6%E8%82%B1 Zuo Qiuming – “Zuo Zhuan – Duke Ding’s Thirteenth Year”: When one’s arm had been broken three times, that person would surely become a good physician (三折肱知為良醫)….