How do you pronounce 马齿徒增?

马齿徒增 is pronounced mǎ chǐ tú zēng in Mandarin Chinese.

What does 马齿徒增 literally mean?

Literally, 马齿徒增 means “Horse's teeth vainly increasing; age increasing in vain”. It is used to mean “to grow old without achieving anything significant”.

Where does 马齿徒增 come from?

马齿徒增 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.

What is the Chinese definition of 马齿徒增?

马的牙齿有多少，就可以知道它的年龄有多大。比喻自己年岁白白地增加了，学业或事业却没有什么成就。

马齿徒增 — “To grow old without achieving anything significant”

马齿徒增 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to grow old without achieving anything significant”. To lament one's wasted years and lack of accomplishment as age increases. Literally, “Horse's teeth vainly increasing; age increasing in vain”.

Frequency

马齿徒增 Pronunciation and Pinyin

马mǎ
齿chǐ
徒tú
增zēng

马齿徒增 Character Breakdown

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
马	mǎ	3	horse, big, large
齿	chǐ	8	teeth, cogs, age, disdain
徒	tú	10	disciple, on foot, in vain
增	zēng	15	increase, add, augment

Example Sentence with 马齿徒增

他常常感到自己马齿徒增，在专业领域里还没有做出什么突出贡献。

He often felt his age had increased in vain, having yet to make any outstanding contributions in his professional field.

Origin and Story of 马齿徒增

During the Spring and Autumn period, Duke Xian of Jin was determined to annex the state of Guo but lacked a suitable route to reach it. His minister, Xun Xi, suggested offering valuable horses and precious jade to the state of Yu in exchange for passage through its territory.

Duke Xian, though pained to part with such treasures, agreed. Jin then effortlessly conquered Guo.

Immediately afterward, Xun Xi advised attacking Yu, thus recovering the jade and the fine horses, which by then had merely grown a few more teeth (i.e., had aged slightly). The horses had merely gotten older without serving a grand purpose for the Jin state in their 'loan' period, leading to the idiom's meaning of one's age increasing without achieving anything substantial.

Idioms Related to 马齿徒增

Synonyms of 马齿徒增

mǎ马chǐ齿tú徒zhǎng长lamenting wasted years without achievement

Antonyms of 马齿徒增

gōng功chéng成míng名jiù就achieve success and fame

More idioms starting with 马

Questions about 马齿徒增

What does 马齿徒增 mean?: 马齿徒增 (mǎ chǐ tú zēng) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to grow old without achieving anything significant”.
How do you pronounce 马齿徒增?: 马齿徒增 is pronounced mǎ chǐ tú zēng in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 马齿徒增 literally mean?: Literally, 马齿徒增 means “Horse's teeth vainly increasing; age increasing in vain”. It is used to mean “to grow old without achieving anything significant”.
Where does 马齿徒增 come from?: 马齿徒增 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 马齿徒增?: 马的牙齿有多少，就可以知道它的年龄有多大。比喻自己年岁白白地增加了，学业或事业却没有什么成就。

Copy the pinyin for 马齿徒增 →Choose tone marks or tone numbers and copy the complete four-character reading.Read Chinese vocabulary and idiom guides →Continue with words, phrases, and idioms explained through natural examples.