铁石心肠 — “To have a heart of stone”
铁石心肠 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to have a heart of stone”. To be hard-hearted or unfeeling, showing no pity or compassion. Literally, “heart of iron and stone”.
Frequency
铁石心肠 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 铁tiě
- 石shí
- 心xīn
- 肠cháng
铁石心肠 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 铁石心肠
尽管她看到寒风中瑟瑟发抖的流浪动物，但她的铁石心肠让她没有丝毫怜悯。
Despite seeing the stray animal shivering in the cold wind, her heart of stone prevented her from feeling any pity.
Origin and Story of 铁石心肠
In 604 AD, Emperor Yang of Sui, Yang Guang, ascended the throne after killing his father. He ordered Xue Daoheng, the Sili Daifu (an official in charge of inspections), to conduct an assessment of all officials in the empire.
Xue Daoheng's appraisal of Jing Su, the Sima of Weizhou, was: "His heart is like iron and stone, becoming even firmer with age."
The minister Yuwen Shu hoped Jing Su would protect his relatives and friends who committed evil deeds by relying on his influence. However, Jing Su brought them to justice one by one.
Idioms Related to 铁石心肠
Synonyms of 铁石心肠
Antonyms of 铁石心肠
More idioms starting with 铁
- tiě铁zhōng中zhēng铮zhēng铮an outstanding talent
- tiě铁fú佛shāng伤xīn心，，shí石rén人luò落lèi泪profoundly tragic, moving even the inanimate
- tiě铁gōng公jī鸡an extremely stingy person
- tiě铁zuǐ嘴gāng钢yá牙eloquent and articulate debater
- tiě铁bì壁tóng铜qiáng墙impenetrable fortress
- tiě铁bì壁tóng铜shān山formidable and reliable power
- tiě铁xīn心mù木cháng肠extremely resolute and unyielding
- tiě铁xīn心shí石cháng肠utterly unfeeling or hard-hearted
- tiě铁xīn心tiě铁yì意absolutely determined and unwavering
- tiě铁dǎ打xīn心cháng肠to have a heart of steel
- tiě铁dǎ打tóng铜zhù铸extremely sturdy and durable
- tiě铁chǔ杵chéng成zhēn针Perseverance can achieve difficult goals
Questions about 铁石心肠
- What does 铁石心肠 mean?
- 铁石心肠 (tiě shí xīn cháng) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to have a heart of stone”.
- How do you pronounce 铁石心肠?
- 铁石心肠 is pronounced tiě shí xīn cháng in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 铁石心肠 literally mean?
- Literally, 铁石心肠 means “heart of iron and stone”. It is used to mean “to have a heart of stone”.
- Where does 铁石心肠 come from?
- 铁石心肠 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 铁石心肠?
- 心肠硬得象铁和石头一样。形容心肠很硬，不为感情所动。