仰人鼻息 — “Rely on another's breath”
仰人鼻息 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be completely dependent on others, lacking independence and initiative; to live at the mercy or whim of others”. Literally, “Rely on another's breath”.
仰人鼻息 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 仰yǎng
- 人rén
- 鼻bí
- 息xī
仰人鼻息 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 仰人鼻息
Origin and Story of 仰人鼻息
During the late Eastern Han Dynasty, Yuan Shao led an army against Dong Zhuo. Many regions supported him, but Han Fu, the governor of Jizhou, felt uneasy about Yuan Shao's rising power and began to withhold his military supplies.
Yuan Shao, in turn, dispatched Gongsun Zan to threaten Jizhou with troops and sent Gao Gan to persuade Han Fu.
Ignoring the advice of his strategists, Han Fu surrendered Jizhou to Yuan Shao, who, ironically, had once been dependent on Han Fu for provisions. This act of submission and dependence ultimately led to Han Fu's tragic suicide.
Idioms Related to 仰人鼻息
Synonyms of 仰人鼻息
More idioms starting with 仰
- yǎng仰bù不kuì愧tiān天to have a clear conscience
- yǎng仰zhī之mí弥gāo高ever more lofty and profound
- yǎng仰shì事fǔ俛chù畜support family
- yǎng仰shì事fǔ俯xù畜support elders and raise children
- yǎng仰shì事fǔ俯yù育support parents and raise children
- yǎng仰rén人méi眉jié睫Act according to another's will
- yǎng仰qǔ取fǔ俯shí拾gain from every direction
- yǎng仰wū屋zhī之qín勤deeply engrossed in scholarly writing
- yǎng仰wū屋xīng兴tàn叹sigh in despair with no solution
- yǎng仰wū屋xīng兴jiē嗟sigh in utter helplessness
- yǎng仰wū屋zhuó着shū书devote oneself entirely to writing
- yǎng仰wū屋qiè窃tàn叹sigh in helpless despair
Questions about 仰人鼻息
- What does 仰人鼻息 mean?
- 仰人鼻息 (yǎng rén bí xī) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be completely dependent on others, lacking independence and initiative; to live at the mercy or whim of others”.
- How do you pronounce 仰人鼻息?
- 仰人鼻息 is pronounced yǎng rén bí xī in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 仰人鼻息 literally mean?
- Literally, 仰人鼻息 means “Rely on another's breath”. It is used to mean “to be completely dependent on others, lacking independence and initiative; to live at the mercy or whim of others”.
- Where does 仰人鼻息 come from?
- 仰人鼻息 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 仰人鼻息?
- 仰：依赖；息：呼吸时进出的气。依赖别人的呼吸来生活。比喻依赖别人，不能自主。