危如累卵
Chinese
editdanger; to endanger | as (if); such as | delicate balancing act | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
trad. (危如累卵) | 危 | 如 | 累卵 | |
simp. #(危如累卵) | 危 | 如 | 累卵 | |
Literally: “as precarious as a vertical pile of eggs”. |
Etymology
editFrom Han Feizi, Chapter 10 (《韓非子·十過》):
- 故曹小國也。而迫於晉、楚之間。其君之危猶累卵也。而以無禮蒞之。此所以絕世也。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
- From: Han Feizi, circa 2nd century BCE, translated based on W. K. Liao's version
- Gù Cáo xiǎoguó yě. Ér pò yú Jìn, Chǔ zhī jiān. Qí jūn zhī wēi yóu lěi luǎn yě. Ér yǐ wúlǐ lì zhī. Cǐ suǒyǐ juéshì yě. [Pinyin]
- Thus, Cao was a small state pressed between Jin and Chu. Its ruler was in constant danger as piled eggs are, but he accorded the Prince of Qin such a discourteous reception. This was the reason why his posterity was wiped out.
故曹小国也。而迫于晋、楚之间。其君之危犹累卵也。而以无礼莅之。此所以绝世也。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
Pronunciation
edit- Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese, standard in Mainland)+
- Hanyu Pinyin:
- Zhuyin: ㄨㄟ ㄖㄨˊ ㄌㄟˇ ㄌㄨㄢˇ
- Tongyong Pinyin: weirúlěiluǎn
- Wade–Giles: wei1-ju2-lei3-luan3
- Yale: wēi-rú-lěi-lwǎn
- Gwoyeu Romatzyh: ueiruleeiloan
- Palladius: вэйжулэйлуань (vɛjžulɛjluanʹ)
- Sinological IPA (key): /weɪ̯⁵⁵ ʐu³⁵ leɪ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ lu̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
- (Standard Chinese, standard in Taiwan; dated variant in Mainland)+
- Hanyu Pinyin:
- Zhuyin: ㄨㄟˊ ㄖㄨˊ ㄌㄟˇ ㄌㄨㄢˇ
- Tongyong Pinyin: wéirúlěiluǎn
- Wade–Giles: wei2-ju2-lei3-luan3
- Yale: wéi-rú-lěi-lwǎn
- Gwoyeu Romatzyh: weiruleeiloan
- Palladius: вэйжулэйлуань (vɛjžulɛjluanʹ)
- Sinological IPA (key): /weɪ̯³⁵ ʐu³⁵ leɪ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ lu̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
- (Standard Chinese, standard in Mainland)+
- Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)+
- Jyutping: ngai4 jyu4 leoi5 leon2
- Yale: ngàih yùh léuih léun
- Cantonese Pinyin: ngai4 jy4 loey5 loen2
- Guangdong Romanization: ngei4 yu4 lêu5 lên2
- Sinological IPA (key): /ŋɐi̯²¹ jyː²¹ lɵy̯¹³ lɵn³⁵/
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)+
Idiom
edit危如累卵
- extremely dangerous; extremely precarious
Synonyms
editCategories:
- Literary Chinese terms with quotations
- Mandarin terms with multiple pronunciations
- Chinese lemmas
- Mandarin lemmas
- Cantonese lemmas
- Chinese idioms
- Mandarin idioms
- Cantonese idioms
- Chinese chengyu
- Mandarin chengyu
- Cantonese chengyu
- Chinese terms with IPA pronunciation
- Chinese terms spelled with 危
- Chinese terms spelled with 如
- Chinese terms spelled with 累
- Chinese terms spelled with 卵
- Chinese chengyu derived from the Han Feizi