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Definition 2024

郢書燕說

郢書燕說

See also: 郢书燕说

Chinese

{| style="clear: right;margin: 1em;border-collapse: collapse;text-align: center"

|- ! !name of an ancient city !book; letter !swallow (a type of bird); (surname); place name !to speak; to say; persuade (politically) |- !trad. (郢書燕說) | 郢 | 書 | 燕 | 說 |- !simp. (郢书燕说) | 郢 | 书 | 燕 | 说 |}

Idiom

郢書燕說

  1. to misinterpret the original meaning; to distort the meaning in order to fit one's ideas; to pile up errors

References

  • “Chronicon Mundi blog”, in (Please provide the title of the work), (Please provide a date or year)

Etymology

literraly Ying writes a letter and Yan reads it. This idiom come from an annecdote told by Han Fei (韓非／韩非). A man from Ying (郢) in the state of Chu (楚 (chǔ)) was writing a letter to the minister of Yan (燕 (yān)). As he was wrinting at night, he ordered to "Raise the light." but he accidentally wrote what he said. When the minister of Yan received the letter, he interpreted "Raise the light" as "Honor the enlightened." or "Promote the worthy and employ them." which led to the regulation of the state of Chu.

Pronunciation

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