二桃殺三士
Chinese
edittwo | peach | to kill; to murder; to slaughter | three | scholar; warrior; knight | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
trad. (二桃殺三士) | 二 | 桃 | 殺 | 三 | 士 | |
simp. (二桃杀三士) | 二 | 桃 | 杀 | 三 | 士 | |
Literally: “killing three warriors with two peaches”. |
Etymology
editBased on a story in Yanzi chunqiu, when Yan Ying, the prime minister of the State of Qi schemed three arrogant and disobedient generals to death by awarding two peaches to the generals who accomplished the most. Conflicts arose and all of them committed suicide under remorse and shame. Compare with the mythology of apple of discord.
Pronunciation
edit- Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)+
- Hanyu Pinyin:
- Zhuyin: ㄦˋ ㄊㄠˊ ㄕㄚ ㄙㄢ ㄕˋ
- Tongyong Pinyin: èrtáo sha sanshìh
- Wade–Giles: êrh4-tʻao2 sha1 san1-shih4
- Yale: èr-táu shā sān-shr̀
- Gwoyeu Romatzyh: elltaur sha sanshyh
- Palladius: эртао ша саньши (ertao ša sanʹši)
- Sinological IPA (key): /ˀɤɻ⁵¹ tʰɑʊ̯³⁵ ʂä⁵⁵ sän⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹/
- (Standard Chinese)+
Idiom
edit二桃殺三士