十室九空 — “A scene of widespread desolation where most houses are empty”
十室九空 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “a scene of widespread desolation where most houses are empty”. Indicating severe population loss due to disasters like war or famine. Literally, “Ten houses nine empty”.
十室九空 Pronunciation and Pinyin
十室九空 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 十室九空
Origin and Story of 十室九空
During the Northern Song Dynasty, the reformist Fan Zhongyan was demoted for submitting a memorial to the emperor, and Yu Jing was also demoted for pleading on his behalf.
Later, during the Qingli era, Emperor Renzong of Song, Zhao Zhen, reappointed Yu Jing as a Right Policy Critic.
A fire broke out at Linggan Pagoda in Kaibao Temple. Some people took the opportunity to advocate for superstition and rebuild the pagoda.
Yu Jing submitted a memorial, stating: 'Currently, there are continuous conflicts in the western regions, people are displaced, and nine out of ten households are empty; they need to be appeased.'
Idioms Related to 十室九空
Synonyms of 十室九空
More idioms starting with 十
- shí十wàn万bā八qiān千lǐ里extremely far apart
- shí十wàn万huǒ火jí急extremely urgent
- shí十wàn万huǒ火sù速with extreme urgency and speed
- shí十bù不dāng当yī一ten people are not worth one
- shí十shì世dān单chuán传sole male heir for ten generations
- shí十zhī之bā八jiǔ九most likely
- shí十èr二wàn万fēn分extremely; to the utmost degree
- shí十èr二dào道jīn金pái牌a series of urgent imperial decrees
- shí十èr二jīn金pái牌A series of urgent imperial edicts
- shí十èr二jīn金chāi钗a group of beautiful women
- shí十wǔ五gè个diào吊tǒng桶dǎ打shuǐ水，，qī七shàng上bā八xià下extremely nervous and agitated
- shí十wǔ五gè个diào吊tǒng桶dǎ打shuǐ水，，qī七shàng上bā八luò落agitated and anxious
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Open the tool →Questions about 十室九空
What does 十室九空 mean?
十室九空 (shí shì jiǔ kōng) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “a scene of widespread desolation where most houses are empty”.
How do you pronounce 十室九空?
十室九空 is pronounced shí shì jiǔ kōng in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 十室九空 literally mean?
Literally, 十室九空 means “Ten houses nine empty”. It is used to mean “a scene of widespread desolation where most houses are empty”.
Where does 十室九空 come from?
十室九空 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 十室九空?
室：人家。十家有九家一无所有。形容人民大量死亡或逃亡后的荒凉景象。