画虎不成反类狗 — “Draw a tiger unsuccessfully, and instead resemble a dog”
画虎不成反类狗 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to attempt to imitate something grand or impressive but fail miserably, resulting in a poor, often ridiculous, imitation; to make a botch of something by attempting more than one is capable of”. Literally, “Draw a tiger unsuccessfully, and instead resemble a dog”.
画虎不成反类狗 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 画huà
- 虎hǔ
- 不bù
- 成chéng
- 反fǎn
- 类lèi
- 狗gǒu
画虎不成反类狗 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 画虎不成反类狗
Origin and Story of 画虎不成反类狗
In the early Eastern Han Dynasty, General Fubo Ma Yuan was very strict in educating his nephews and younger generations, hoping they would become useful talents. He disliked his nephews, Ma Yan and Ma Dun, gossiping about others behind their backs.
He wrote a letter, 'Admonition to My Nephews Yan and Dun,' advising them to learn from the admirable qualities of figures like Du Jiliang and Long Bogao.
He warned them that if they failed to learn well and imitate good examples, it would be like failing to draw a tiger and instead producing something that resembles a dog.
Idioms Related to 画虎不成反类狗
Synonyms of 画虎不成反类狗
More idioms starting with 画
- huà画yī一zhī之fǎ法a uniform law or policy
- huà画zhōng中yǒu有shī诗poetry in painting
- huà画luǎn卵diāo雕xīn薪indulge in extreme extravagance
- huà画tǔ土fēn分jiāng疆divide and demarcate territory
- huà画dì地wéi为láo牢confine oneself to a designated scope
- huà画dì地wéi为láo牢，，yì议bù不rù入confined by fear, dare not overstep
- huà画dì地wéi为yù狱restrict to a specified sphere
- huà画dì地wéi为yù狱，，shì势bù不rù入Tyrannical power creates insurmountable fear
- huà画dì地zuò作yù狱confine to a designated area
- huà画dì地kè刻mù木to be jailed and interrogated
- huà画dì地chéng成tú图demonstrate exceptional talent and skill
- huà画dì地chéng成láo牢Confine oneself to a limited scope
Questions about 画虎不成反类狗
- What does 画虎不成反类狗 mean?
- 画虎不成反类狗 (huà hǔ bù chéng fǎn lèi gǒu) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to attempt to imitate something grand or impressive but fail miserably, resulting in a poor, often ridiculous, imitation; to make a botch of something by attempting more than one is capable of”.
- How do you pronounce 画虎不成反类狗?
- 画虎不成反类狗 is pronounced huà hǔ bù chéng fǎn lèi gǒu in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 画虎不成反类狗 literally mean?
- Literally, 画虎不成反类狗 means “Draw a tiger unsuccessfully, and instead resemble a dog”. It is used to mean “to attempt to imitate something grand or impressive but fail miserably, resulting in a poor, often ridiculous, imitation; to make a botch of something by attempting more than one is capable of”.
- Where does 画虎不成反类狗 come from?
- 画虎不成反类狗 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 画虎不成反类狗?
- 类：象。画老虎不成，却象狗。比喻模仿不到家，反而不伦不类。