家鸡野雉 — “To describe vastly different styles”

家鸡野雉 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to describe vastly different styles”. Especially in art or calligraphy, often implying a distinction between a common, familiar style (like a domestic fowl) and a unique, refined, or more esteemed style (like a wild pheasant). It can also refer to a preference for the novel or distant over the familiar. Literally, “domestic fowl and wild pheasant”.

Frequency

家鸡野雉 Pronunciation and Pinyin

家鸡野雉 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
家	jiā	10	family home or expert
鸡	jī	7	chicken
野	yě	11	wild, open country
雉	zhì	13	pheasant

Example Sentence with 家鸡野雉

这两位设计师的作品风格可谓家鸡野雉，一个偏向简约现代，另一个则追求古典繁复。

The styles of these two designers' works are truly like "domestic fowl and wild pheasant"; one leans towards minimalist modern, while the other pursues classical complexity.

Origin and Story of 家鸡野雉

During the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the military general Yu Yi was also a skilled calligrapher, comparable to Wang Xizhi.

He was displeased when he saw his son and nephew learning Wang Xizhi's calligraphy instead of his own. He remarked that his son and nephew preferred "wild pheasants" over "domestic fowls," implying they favored Wang Xizhi's distant and revered style over his own familiar one, challenging Wang Xizhi's superiority.

However, after seeing a piece of Wang Xizhi's calligraphy, Yu Yi became utterly convinced and accepted Wang's mastery.