倒绷孩儿 — “To swaddle a baby incorrectly / to wrap a baby upside down”
倒绷孩儿 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to make a careless or silly mistake in something one is usually proficient at or very familiar with, often due to overconfidence or a momentary lapse in attention”. Literally, “to swaddle a baby incorrectly / to wrap a baby upside down”.
倒绷孩儿 Pronunciation and Pinyin
倒绷孩儿 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 倒绷孩儿
Origin and Story of 倒绷孩儿
During Emperor Renzong's reign in the Song Dynasty, a scholar named Miao Zhen served as an official for several years before taking the imperial examination.
The prime minister at the time, Yan Shu, advised him to review his studies.
Miao Zhen confidently replied that he wouldn't make such a fundamental mistake as 'wrapping a baby upside down' (倒绷孩儿), implying he wouldn't botch something he was supposed to be good at.
However, during the exam, he mistakenly wrote '普天之下莫非王' (All under heaven is the king's) instead of the complete phrase '普天之下，莫非王土' (All under heaven is the king's land), leading to his failure.
When Miao Zhen met Yan Shu again, he felt extremely ashamed.
Idioms Related to 倒绷孩儿
More idioms starting with 倒
- dǎo倒sān三diān颠sì四muddled and incoherent
- dǎo倒guān冠luò落pèi佩resign from office and return home
- dǎo倒guàn冠luò落pèi珮shed official attire and retire
- dǎo倒fèng凤diān颠luán鸾sexual intercourse
- dào倒sì四diān颠sān三incoherent or muddled in speech or action
- dǎo倒yīn因wéi为guǒ果reverse cause and effect
- dào倒xǐ屣xiāng相yíng迎eagerly welcome a guest
- dào倒xǐ屣ér而yíng迎eagerly welcome a guest
- dào倒xǐ屣yíng迎bīn宾eagerly welcome guests
- dǎo倒shān山qīng倾hǎi海overwhelming power and momentum
- dǎo倒xiá峡xiè泻hé河fluent and vigorous writing
- dǎo倒lǐn廪qīng倾qūn囷exhaust all resources or knowledge
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Open the tool →Questions about 倒绷孩儿
What does 倒绷孩儿 mean?
倒绷孩儿 (dào bēng hái ér) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to make a careless or silly mistake in something one is usually proficient at or very familiar with, often due to overconfidence or a momentary lapse in attention”.
How do you pronounce 倒绷孩儿?
倒绷孩儿 is pronounced dào bēng hái ér in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 倒绷孩儿 literally mean?
Literally, 倒绷孩儿 means “to swaddle a baby incorrectly / to wrap a baby upside down”. It is used to mean “to make a careless or silly mistake in something one is usually proficient at or very familiar with, often due to overconfidence or a momentary lapse in attention”.
Where does 倒绷孩儿 come from?
倒绷孩儿 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 倒绷孩儿?
绷：包扎。接生婆把初生婴儿裹倒了。比喻一向做惯了的事因一时疏忽而弄错了。