兔丝燕麦 — “Dodder and wild oats”
兔丝燕麦 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “used to describe something that has the name but lacks the reality or substance; titular but without practical value; a misnomer”. Literally, “Dodder and wild oats”.
兔丝燕麦 Pronunciation and Pinyin
兔丝燕麦 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 兔丝燕麦
Origin and Story of 兔丝燕麦
During the reign of Emperor Xuanwu of the Northern Wei Dynasty, Xing Shao, a high-ranking academic official serving as Guozi Jijiu (President of the Imperial Academy), was deeply displeased that the imperial court prioritized spending vast human and financial resources on building Buddhist temples instead of focusing on scholarly pursuits. He believed this approach would detrimentally affect the country and its people.
Consequently, he, along with other academic officials, jointly submitted a memorial to the emperor advocating for the revitalization of the Imperial Academy.
In their petition, they stated, "Today, although the Imperial Academy bears the name of an educational institution, it lacks the practical reality of teaching. How is this any different from dodder and wild oats, or the Southern Dipper and Northern Dipper?" (The latter idiom also refers to things that have the appearance but no substance, like constellations named after dippers that cannot actually hold water.)
Idioms Related to 兔丝燕麦
Synonyms of 兔丝燕麦
More idioms starting with 兔
- tù兔tóu头zhāng獐nǎo脑looking mean and sly
- tù兔tóu头zhāng麞nǎo脑shifty, wretched, or despicable appearance
- tù兔zi子bù不chī吃wō窝biān边cǎo草A wrongdoer avoids harming those nearby
- tù兔jǐn尽gǒu狗pēng烹discard loyal subordinates after they served their purpose
- tù兔sǐ死fú凫jǔ举act with extreme speed and agility
- tù兔sǐ死quǎn犬jī饥loyal subordinate neglected after enemy dealt with
- tù兔sǐ死hú狐bēi悲grieve over a comrade's death
- tù兔sǐ死hú狐bēi悲，，wù物shāng伤qí其lèi类grieve for a comrade's misfortune
- tù兔sǐ死gǒu狗pēng烹discard loyal helpers once no longer needed
- tù兔quē缺wū乌chén沉time flies quickly
- tù兔kuí葵yàn燕mài麦desolate and barren landscape
- tù兔jiǎo角niú牛yì翼utterly illogical or impossible
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Open the tool →Questions about 兔丝燕麦
What does 兔丝燕麦 mean?
兔丝燕麦 (tù sī yàn mài) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “used to describe something that has the name but lacks the reality or substance; titular but without practical value; a misnomer”.
How do you pronounce 兔丝燕麦?
兔丝燕麦 is pronounced tù sī yàn mài in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 兔丝燕麦 literally mean?
Literally, 兔丝燕麦 means “Dodder and wild oats”. It is used to mean “used to describe something that has the name but lacks the reality or substance; titular but without practical value; a misnomer”.
Where does 兔丝燕麦 come from?
兔丝燕麦 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 兔丝燕麦?
兔丝：菟丝子。菟丝不是丝，燕麦不是麦。比喻有名无实。