乳臭未干 — “Young and inexperienced”
乳臭未干 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Young and inexperienced”. Wet behind the ears; still green. Often used to dismiss or belittle someone for their immaturity. Literally, “still smelling of milk; the smell of milk has not yet dried”.
乳臭未干 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 乳rǔ
- 臭xiù
- 未wèi
- 干gān
乳臭未干 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 乳臭未干
Origin and Story of 乳臭未干
During the reign of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty, Yang Guibao was ordered to retrieve a precious court treasure that had been stolen by Du Yueying. He sent his young son, Yang Wenguang, who was still very young, to lead the army to Jiao Mountain for this task. However, Yang Wenguang was successively defeated by three women warriors Dou Jingu, Du Yueying, and Feiyun n and was forced to marry each of them.
Later generations composed a poem to commemorate this event: "Wenguang, thirteen, still wet behind the ears, led troops to Jiao Mountain for the treasure. Thrice he fought, thrice he lost to women, and was forced to be a groom three times over."
Idioms Related to 乳臭未干
Synonyms of 乳臭未干
Questions about 乳臭未干
- What does 乳臭未干 mean?
- 乳臭未干 (rǔ xiù wèi gān) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Young and inexperienced”.
- How do you pronounce 乳臭未干?
- 乳臭未干 is pronounced rǔ xiù wèi gān in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 乳臭未干 literally mean?
- Literally, 乳臭未干 means “still smelling of milk; the smell of milk has not yet dried”. It is used to mean “Young and inexperienced”.
- Where does 乳臭未干 come from?
- 乳臭未干 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 乳臭未干?
- 臭：气味。身上的奶腥气还没有退尽。对年轻人表示轻蔑的说法。