肝腦塗地

Chinese

		liver and brain; one's body or life	to smear; daub	earth; ground; field earth; ground; field; place; land; (subor. part. adverbial); ‑ly
trad. (肝腦塗地)		肝腦	塗	地
simp. (肝脑涂地)		肝脑	涂	地
Literally: “liver and brains smear the ground”.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): gānnǎotúdì

  (Zhuyin): ㄍㄢ ㄋㄠˇ ㄊㄨˊ ㄉㄧˋ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): gon¹ nou⁵ tou⁴ dei⁶

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: gānnǎotúdì
    • Zhuyin: ㄍㄢ ㄋㄠˇ ㄊㄨˊ ㄉㄧˋ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: gannǎotúdì
    • Wade–Giles: kan¹-nao³-tʻu²-ti⁴
    • Yale: gān-nǎu-tú-dì
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: gannaotwudih
    • Palladius: ганьнаотуди (ganʹnaotudi)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kän⁵⁵ nɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ tʰu³⁵ ti⁵¹/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: gon¹ nou⁵ tou⁴ dei⁶
    • Yale: gōn nóuh tòuh deih
    • Cantonese Pinyin: gon¹ nou⁵ tou⁴ dei⁶
    • Guangdong Romanization: gon¹ nou⁵ tou⁴ déi⁶
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kɔːn⁵⁵ nou̯¹³ tʰou̯²¹ tei̯²²/

Idiom

肝腦塗地

1. to die a terrible death
2. to offer one's life sacrificially in loyalty

   • 臣當死，往者醉失禮，王隱忍不加誅也；臣終不敢以蔭蔽之德而不顯報王也，常願肝腦塗地，用頸血湔敵久矣，臣乃夜絕纓者。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     臣当死，往者醉失礼，王隐忍不加诛也；臣终不敢以荫蔽之德而不显报王也，常愿肝脑涂地，用颈血湔敌久矣，臣乃夜绝缨者。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: c. 77 B.C.E., 劉向 (Liu Xiang), 《說苑》 (Garden of Stories), chapter 6

     Chén dāng sǐ, wǎngzhě zuì shīlǐ, wáng yǐnrěn bù jiā zhū yě; chén zhōng bùgǎn yǐ yīnbì zhī dé ér bùxiǎn bào wáng yě, cháng yuàn gānnǎotúdì, yòng jǐng xuè jiān dí jiǔ yǐ, chén nǎi yè juéyīng zhě. [Pinyin]

     I should have been put to death. A few years ago, I got drunk and forgot my manners. Your Majesty showed restraint and did not put me to death. I would never dare not overtly repay Your Majesty's covert kindness. I would rather put my life on the line and drown the enemy in my own blood, for I am the one whose headpiece cord was yanked off on that night.