弃之可惜 — “It's a pity to discard”

弃之可惜 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “it's a pity to discard”. Too good to throw away; worth keeping. Literally, “A pity to discard it”.

Frequency

弃之可惜 Pronunciation and Pinyin

弃之可惜 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
弃	qì	7	abandon, discard, give up
之	zhī	4	possessive or connective particle
可	kě	5	can, may, suitable
惜	xī	11	cherish, regret, or begrudge

Example Sentence with 弃之可惜

这件旧家具虽然有些磨损，但质量很好，弃之可惜，不如重新打磨翻新一下。

Although this old piece of furniture is a bit worn, its quality is still very good; it would be a pity to discard it, so it's better to polish and refurbish it.

Origin and Story of 弃之可惜

During the late Eastern Han Dynasty, Cao Cao's army was stationed at Xiegu Pass for many days. If they advanced, Ma Chao's army would block them; if they retreated, they feared being ridiculed by Ma Chao, thus finding himself in a dilemma.

One evening, while he was having dinner, his general Xiahou Dun came to ask for the night's password. Cao Cao saw chicken ribs in his soup and casually said 'chicken ribs'. Yang Xiu, upon hearing this, immediately ordered the soldiers to prepare for withdrawal.