身在曹营心在汉 — “Body in Cao's camp, heart in Han”
身在曹营心在汉 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be physically present in one place or working for one party, but secretly loyal to or yearning for another; to be torn between two loyalties”. Literally, “Body in Cao's camp, heart in Han”.
身在曹营心在汉 Pronunciation and Pinyin
身在曹营心在汉 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 身在曹营心在汉
Origin and Story of 身在曹营心在汉
Towards the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Liu Bei was defeated by Cao Cao. Guan Yu, in order to protect Liu Bei's wives, was forced to surrender to Cao Cao.
Cao Cao treated Guan Yu with utmost generosity, offering him a grand mansion, beautiful women, a battle robe, and a prized steed. Yet, Guan Yu remained indifferent, his sole focus being to inquire about Liu Bei's whereabouts.
Zhang Liao once asked him why he was 'in Cao's camp but his heart was in Han.' Guan Yu replied that he and Liu Bei had sworn an oath of life and death, vowing to share both fortune and adversity.
Idioms Related to 身在曹营心在汉
Synonyms of 身在曹营心在汉
Antonyms of 身在曹营心在汉
More idioms starting with 身
- shēn身bù不yóu由zhǔ主beyond one's control
- shēn身bù不yóu由jǐ己beyond one's control
- shēn身bù不yù遇shí时born at an unfortunate time
- shēn身lín临qí其jìng境To experience something firsthand or immersively
- shēn身jià价bèi倍zēng增greatly enhance one's personal worth
- shēn身jià价bǎi百bèi倍one's social status or value rises significantly
- shēn身tǐ体lì力xíng行practice what you preach
- shēn身tǐ体fà发fū肤one's entire physical self
- shēn身zuò做shēn身dāng当take full responsibility for one's actions
- shēn身xiān先shì士zhòng众lead by example
- shēn身xiān先shì士zú卒lead by example
- shēn身xiān先zhāo朝lù露pass away swiftly like morning dew
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Open the tool →Questions about 身在曹营心在汉
What does 身在曹营心在汉 mean?
身在曹营心在汉 (shēn zài cáo yíng xīn zài hàn) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be physically present in one place or working for one party, but secretly loyal to or yearning for another; to be torn between two loyalties”.
How do you pronounce 身在曹营心在汉?
身在曹营心在汉 is pronounced shēn zài cáo yíng xīn zài hàn in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 身在曹营心在汉 literally mean?
Literally, 身在曹营心在汉 means “Body in Cao's camp, heart in Han”. It is used to mean “to be physically present in one place or working for one party, but secretly loyal to or yearning for another; to be torn between two loyalties”.
Where does 身在曹营心在汉 come from?
身在曹营心在汉 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to modern Chinese. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 身在曹营心在汉?
比喻身子虽然在对立的一方，但心里想着自己原来所在的一方。