睚眦之怨 — “A very minor grievance or resentment”

睚眦之怨 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “a very minor grievance or resentment”. Often stemming from a slight offense or an angry look. Literally, “Grudge for an angry glance”.

Frequency

睚眦之怨 Pronunciation and Pinyin

睚眦之怨 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
睚	yá	13	corner of the eye
眦	zì	11	corner of the eye
之	zhī	4	possessive or connective particle
怨	yuàn	9	resentment or grievance

Example Sentence with 睚眦之怨

我们不应该因为一些睚眦之怨而破坏彼此多年的友谊。

We should not let minor grievances ruin our years of friendship.

Origin and Story of 睚眦之怨

Fan Sui accompanied Xu Jia, a high official of the State of Wei, on a diplomatic mission to the State of Qi. Xu Jia suspected Fan Sui of colluding with Qi and reported this to Wei Qi, the Prime Minister of Wei, upon their return. Fan Sui was unjustly beaten and injured.

He changed his name to Zhang Lu, escaped to the State of Qin, and eventually became its Prime Minister.

Later, Xu Jia was dispatched on a mission to Qin. Fan Sui disguised himself as a poor man and went to see him. Seeing his pitiful state, Xu Jia gave him a tattered robe.

When Xu Jia later discovered that this poor man was actually the Prime Minister of Qin, he was terrified and apologized profusely.

Fan Sui told him that he intended to avenge every slight (睚眦必报) against Wei Qi, illustrating how even a seemingly minor grievance or slight can lead to deep-seated resentment.