食玉炊桂 — “Prices for food and fuel are extremely high”
食玉炊桂 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Prices for food and fuel are extremely high”. Exorbitant prices for daily necessities, indicating a very expensive cost of living. Literally, “eat jade, cook cassia”.
食玉炊桂 Pronunciation and Pinyin
食玉炊桂 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 食玉炊桂
Origin and Story of 食玉炊桂
During the Warring States period, Su Qin, a master of diplomatic strategy, was skilled in debate and traveled widely to lobby various states.
When he went to the State of Chu to request an audience with King Huai, the palace gate attendant, unable to extort a bribe, deliberately tried to sabotage him. He made Su Qin wait for three days and sold him goods at exorbitant prices.
After King Huai met Su Qin, they conversed very agreeably. Su Qin then remarked that rice in Chu was as expensive as jade, and firewood was as costly as cassia wood.
Idioms Related to 食玉炊桂
Synonyms of 食玉炊桂
More idioms starting with 食
- shí食bù不xià下yàn咽too distraught to eat
- shí食bù不èr二wèi味eat simply with only one dish
- shí食bù不chōng充kǒu口unable to get enough food
- shí食bù不chōng充cháng肠not enough food to satisfy hunger
- shí食bù不chōng充jī饥barely enough food to survive
- shí食bù不jiān兼wèi味eat only one dish
- shí食bù不jiān兼ròu肉eat simply, limiting meat consumption
- shí食bù不yàn厌jīng精，，kuài脍bù不yàn厌xì细eat well-prepared refined food
- shí食bù不niàn念bǎo饱eat with moderation
- shí食bù不xiá暇bǎo饱too busy to eat properly
- shí食bù不guǒ果fù腹not have enough food to eat
- shí食bù不qiú求gān甘not seek delicious food
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Open the tool →Questions about 食玉炊桂
What does 食玉炊桂 mean?
食玉炊桂 (shí yù chuī guì) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Prices for food and fuel are extremely high”.
How do you pronounce 食玉炊桂?
食玉炊桂 is pronounced shí yù chuī guì in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 食玉炊桂 literally mean?
Literally, 食玉炊桂 means “eat jade, cook cassia”. It is used to mean “Prices for food and fuel are extremely high”.
Where does 食玉炊桂 come from?
食玉炊桂 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 食玉炊桂?
食品贵如油，燃料贵如桂。比喻物价昂贵。