食不甘味 — “To be so preoccupied or worried that one finds food tasteless”
食不甘味 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be so preoccupied or worried that one finds food tasteless”. To have no appetite due to anxiety. Literally, “Food does not taste good while eating”.
食不甘味 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 食shí
- 不bù
- 甘gān
- 味wèi
食不甘味 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 食不甘味
Origin and Story of 食不甘味
During the Warring States period, Su Qin, a master of diplomatic strategy, first tried to persuade King Huiwen of Qin with a 'lianheng' (horizontal alliance) strategy, aiming to sow discord among the six states and conquer them individually.
When his proposal was not accepted, he switched to the 'hezong' (vertical alliance) strategy to unite the six states against Qin. He then successfully persuaded the state of Zhao and was appointed Lord Wu'an.
Afterwards, he advised King Wei of Chu, explaining that Qin's growing power would be very detrimental to Chu. King Wei of Chu, deeply moved by Su Qin's insights, exclaimed that this predicament was precisely why he had been 'eating without relish'.
Idioms Related to 食不甘味
Antonyms of 食不甘味
More idioms starting with 食
- shí食bù不xià下yàn咽too distraught to eat
- shí食bù不èr二wèi味eat simply with only one dish
- shí食bù不chōng充kǒu口unable to get enough food
- shí食bù不chōng充cháng肠not enough food to satisfy hunger
- shí食bù不chōng充jī饥barely enough food to survive
- shí食bù不jiān兼wèi味eat only one dish
- shí食bù不jiān兼ròu肉eat simply, limiting meat consumption
- shí食bù不yàn厌jīng精，，kuài脍bù不yàn厌xì细eat well-prepared refined food
- shí食bù不niàn念bǎo饱eat with moderation
- shí食bù不xiá暇bǎo饱too busy to eat properly
- shí食bù不guǒ果fù腹not have enough food to eat
- shí食bù不qiú求gān甘not seek delicious food
Questions about 食不甘味
- What does 食不甘味 mean?
- 食不甘味 (shí bù gān wèi) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be so preoccupied or worried that one finds food tasteless”.
- How do you pronounce 食不甘味?
- 食不甘味 is pronounced shí bù gān wèi in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 食不甘味 literally mean?
- Literally, 食不甘味 means “Food does not taste good while eating”. It is used to mean “to be so preoccupied or worried that one finds food tasteless”.
- Where does 食不甘味 come from?
- 食不甘味 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 食不甘味?
- 甘味：感到味道好。吃东西都觉得没有味道。形容心里有事，吃东西也不香。