残羹冷炙 — “Refers to leftover food from a meal”

Q: What is the Chinese definition of 残羹冷炙?

指吃剩的饭菜。也比喻别人施舍的东西。

残羹冷炙 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “refers to leftover food from a meal”. Metaphorically, it denotes something offered out of pity or charity by a powerful person, often implying a humiliating or servile position. Literally, “leftover soup and cold roast”.

Frequency

残羹冷炙 Pronunciation and Pinyin

残羹冷炙 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
残	cán	9	harm, destroy, or cruel
羹	gēng	19	thick soup or stew
冷	lěng	7	cold, quiet, or indifferent
炙	zhì	8	roast, popular, or influenced

Example Sentence with 残羹冷炙

他宁愿靠自己的努力，也不愿接受权贵的残羹冷炙，过着没有尊严的生活。

He would rather rely on his own efforts than accept the humiliating scraps from the influential, living a life without dignity.

Origin and Story of 残羹冷炙

Yan Zhitui, a distinguished scholar from the Northern Qi Dynasty, was a man of profound knowledge. He authored the influential work "Family Instructions for the Yan Clan" ("颜氏家训"), which championed Confucian ideals as the guiding principles for life.

He firmly believed that one should not be easily swayed or manipulated by the powerful merely for a bit of praise. He warned against enduring the humiliation of accepting 'leftover scraps' from those in high positions due to one's low status, as the powerful would not grant any official post but would instead merely use such individuals as tools for their own amusement and entertainment.