贪求无厌 — “Insatiably greedy”

Q: What is the Chinese definition of 贪求无厌?

贪图利益，无满足的时候。

贪求无厌 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Insatiably greedy”. Covetous without end; never satisfied with what one has. Literally, “Greedy for gain without satisfaction”.

Frequency

贪求无厌 Pronunciation and Pinyin

贪求无厌 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
贪	tān	8	greedy or covetous
求	qiú	7	seek, beg, demand
无	wú	4	without, not having
厌	yàn	6	dislike, detest, be weary of

Example Sentence with 贪求无厌

他因为贪求无厌，最终失去了所有朋友，并自食恶果。

Due to his insatiable greed, he eventually lost all his friends and faced the consequences of his actions.

Origin and Story of 贪求无厌

During the Spring and Autumn period, Shu Xiang, a dignitary from the Jin state, paid a visit to the high official Han Xuanzi. Han Xuanzi expressed his frustration, stating that despite holding the title of Qing, his personal wealth was quite modest.

To Han Xuanzi's surprise, Shu Xiang congratulated him. Shu Xiang then explained: "In earlier times, when Luan Wuzi served as Shang Qing (prime minister), his household had only one servant and about a hundred acres of land, yet he earned everyone's deep respect. However, his son, upon inheriting the Qing position, became insatiably greedy for wealth and accepted bribes, which nearly cost him his life."