丧家之犬 — “A dog that has lost its home/family”
丧家之犬 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “a person who has lost their home, family, or means of support, often wandering aimlessly and feeling desperate and abandoned; a person without a place to go”. Literally, “A dog that has lost its home/family”.
Frequency
丧家之犬 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 丧sàng
- 家jiā
- 之zhī
- 犬quǎn
丧家之犬 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 丧家之犬
他生意失败后，感到自己就像丧家之犬，不知何去何从。
After his business failed, he felt like a lost dog, not knowing where to go or what to do.
Origin and Story of 丧家之犬
Once, Confucius was separated from his disciples in Zheng state. He stood by the East Gate, looking lost.
When Zigong (one of his disciples) asked a local about Confucius's whereabouts, the person described an old man by the East Gate who looked like "a dog that has lost its home," standing there in a daze.
Confucius, upon hearing this description later, smiled calmly and said, "To describe me in such a way is fine. But to say I resemble a homeless dog, that is indeed true! Indeed true!"
Idioms Related to 丧家之犬
Synonyms of 丧家之犬
Antonyms of 丧家之犬
More idioms starting with 丧
- sàng丧lún伦bài败xíng行abandon human relations and corrupt conduct
- sàng丧tiān天hài害lǐ理commit outrageous and immoral acts
- sàng丧shī失dài殆jìn尽utterly lost or depleted
- sàng丧jiā家zhī之gǒu狗a lost and helpless person
- sàng丧jìn尽tiān天liáng良utterly devoid of conscience
- sàng丧shī师rǔ辱guó国lose army, disgrace nation
- sàng丧xīn心bìng病kuáng狂utterly depraved, irrational, and frenzied
- sàng丧míng明zhī之tòng痛profound sorrow of losing a child
- sàng丧quán权rǔ辱guó国forfeit rights and disgrace the nation
- sàng丧qì气guǐ鬼a killjoy or gloomy person
- sàng丧dǎn胆wáng亡hún魂scared out of one's wits
- sàng丧dǎn胆xiāo消hún魂scared out of one's wits
Questions about 丧家之犬
- What does 丧家之犬 mean?
- 丧家之犬 (sàng jiā zhī quǎn) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “a person who has lost their home, family, or means of support, often wandering aimlessly and feeling desperate and abandoned; a person without a place to go”.
- How do you pronounce 丧家之犬?
- 丧家之犬 is pronounced sàng jiā zhī quǎn in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 丧家之犬 literally mean?
- Literally, 丧家之犬 means “a dog that has lost its home/family”. It is used to mean “a person who has lost their home, family, or means of support, often wandering aimlessly and feeling desperate and abandoned; a person without a place to go”.
- Where does 丧家之犬 come from?
- 丧家之犬 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 丧家之犬?
- 无家可归的狗。比喻无处投奔，到处乱窜的人。