初生之犊 — “A young person who is inexperienced but daring and fearless”
初生之犊 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “a young person who is inexperienced but daring and fearless”. A new-born calf fears no tiger. Literally, “newborn calf”.
初生之犊 Pronunciation and Pinyin
初生之犊 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 初生之犊
Origin and Story of 初生之犊
During the late Eastern Han Dynasty, Liu Bei took advantage of the conflict between Cao Cao and Sun Quan, ordering Guan Yu to lead his army north to attack Xiangyang and Fancheng.
Cao Cao sent Cao Ren to lead troops into battle, but he was defeated by Guan Yu's subordinate, Liao Hua. Pang De then led his army and specifically challenged Guan Yu to a decisive battle, with neither side gaining a clear advantage.
Guan Yu told his subordinates that Pang De was "like a new-born calf that fears no tiger," implying his recklessness due to inexperience, and that he must be subdued by strategy.
Idioms Related to 初生之犊
More idioms starting with 初
- chū初xiě写huáng黄tíng庭Done with exquisite skill and precision
- chū初chū出máo茅lú庐new to a job or field
- chū初fā发fú芙róng蓉freshly bloomed lotus
- chū初dù度zhī之chén辰one's birthday
- chū初lái来zhà乍dào到new to a place or situation
- chū初shēng生zhī之dú犊bù不jù惧hǔ虎Young and inexperienced are often fearless
- chū初shēng生zhī之dú犊bù不wèi畏hǔ虎young and inexperienced, yet bold and fearless
- chū初shēng生niú牛dú犊bù不pà怕hǔ虎young and inexperienced, thus bold
- chū初shēng生dú犊fearless due to inexperience
- chū初shì试fēng锋máng芒make one's debut and show talent
- chū初lù露tóu头jiǎo角begin to show one's ability
- chū初lù露fēng锋máng芒first show one's talent or ability
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Open the tool →Questions about 初生之犊
What does 初生之犊 mean?
初生之犊 (chū shēng zhī dú) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “a young person who is inexperienced but daring and fearless”.
How do you pronounce 初生之犊?
初生之犊 is pronounced chū shēng zhī dú in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 初生之犊 literally mean?
Literally, 初生之犊 means “newborn calf”. It is used to mean “a young person who is inexperienced but daring and fearless”.
Where does 初生之犊 come from?
初生之犊 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 初生之犊?
刚出生的小牛，比喻单纯或勇猛的青年人。