无功受禄 — “Receive emolument without merit”
无功受禄 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to receive remuneration or benefits without having contributed any work or merit; to gain rewards undeservedly”. Literally, “receive emolument without merit”.
无功受禄 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 无wú
- 功gōng
- 受shòu
- 禄lù
无功受禄 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 无功受禄
Origin and Story of 无功受禄
During the Warring States period, various states frequently attacked each other. The State of Zhao often invaded the State of Chu with its military might. At this time, a man named Du He from Chu came to see King Huai, claiming he could persuade Zhao to reconcile with Chu.
King Huai was very pleased and planned to bestow Du He with the title of 'Wu Daifu' (a high official rank) before sending him to Zhao.
When Minister Chen Zhen learned of this, he advised King Huai, saying, 'If Du He fails to accomplish the mission of reconciling with Zhao, would bestowing him with the title of Wu Daifu not be receiving emolument without merit?' King Huai found Chen Zhen's words reasonable and asked, 'Then what should I do?' Chen Zhen replied, 'Your Majesty should send Du He to Zhao with ten war chariots. Once he completes his mission, then bestow upon him the title of Wu Daifu.'
King Huai adopted Chen Zhen's strategy and sent Du He to Zhao with ten war chariots. Du He, seeing that King Huai did not mention the title, became very angry and simply refused to undertake the mission to Zhao.
Thereupon, Chen Zhen told the King, 'Du He's refusal to accept the mission to Zhao precisely shows he harbored ulterior motives. His aim was to trick Your Majesty into granting him a title, and now seeing that Your Majesty would not grant it upfront, he simply refuses to go.'
Idioms Related to 无功受禄
Synonyms of 无功受禄
Antonyms of 无功受禄
More idioms starting with 无
- wú无yī一bù不bèi备everything is provided
- wú无yī一bù不zhī知know everything
- wú无yī一kě可not a single redeeming quality
- wú无wàn万dà大qiān千innumerable, countless
- wú无xià下zhù箸chǔ处overwhelmed by an abundance of food
- wú无yǔ与wéi为bǐ比unparalleled, without equal
- wú无yǔ与lún伦bǐ比incomparable and matchless
- wú无yǔ与bǐ比lún伦Unrivaled; beyond compare
- wú无yè业yóu游mín民unemployed wandering vagrant
- wú无sī丝yǒu有xiàn线under a cloud of suspicion
- wú无zhōng中shēng生yǒu有fabricate something out of nothing
- wú无wéi为zhī之zhì治governance by non-interference
Questions about 无功受禄
- What does 无功受禄 mean?
- 无功受禄 (wú gōng shòu lù) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to receive remuneration or benefits without having contributed any work or merit; to gain rewards undeservedly”.
- How do you pronounce 无功受禄?
- 无功受禄 is pronounced wú gōng shòu lù in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 无功受禄 literally mean?
- Literally, 无功受禄 means “receive emolument without merit”. It is used to mean “to receive remuneration or benefits without having contributed any work or merit; to gain rewards undeservedly”.
- Where does 无功受禄 come from?
- 无功受禄 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 无功受禄?
- 禄：旧时官吏的薪俸。没有功劳而得到报酬。