恬不知耻 — Chinese Idiom
恬不知耻 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be utterly devoid of shame or embarrassment, especially after committing a wrong or inappropriate act; to brazenly disregard moral boundaries without any sense of guilt”.
恬不知耻 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 恬tián
- 不bù
- 知zhī
- 耻chǐ
恬不知耻 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 恬不知耻
Origin and Story of 恬不知耻
Wang Anshi (1021-1086), whose courtesy name was Jiefu and pen name Banshan, was from Linchuan, Fuzhou (present-day Jiangxi). He served as prime minister during Emperor Shenzong's reign and initiated reforms.
Cui Gongdu had a stutter and was not a good conversationalist, but he was exceptionally clear-headed and intelligent, remembering everything he read. His literary compositions were highly appreciated by renowned scholars like Ouyang Xiu, Wang Anshi, and Han Qi.
Starting from humble origins, Cui Gongdu had no influential relatives in court to rely on. Therefore, he devoted himself entirely to fawning over Wang Anshi, often greeting him day and night, even showing immense deference when they met in the restroom.
Once, he followed closely behind Wang Anshi, holding onto the tail of his clothing belt. Wang Anshi turned back, puzzled, but Cui Gongdu merely smiled and said, 'Prime Minister, your belt has a bit of dirt on it, and I've carefully wiped it clean with my sleeve.' Onlookers found this utterly ridiculous, yet Cui Gongdu himself felt no shame.
Idioms Related to 恬不知耻
Antonyms of 恬不知耻
More idioms starting with 恬
- tián恬bù不wéi为guài怪to not be surprised by the unusual
- tián恬bù不wéi为yì意to remain unconcerned
- tián恬bù不zhī知guài怪calmly unaware of strangeness
- tián恬bù不zhī知kuì愧feel no shame or remorse
- tián恬bù不zhī知xiū羞shameless and brazen
- tián恬dàn淡guǎ寡yù欲content with simple life, few desires
- tián恬dàn淡wú无wéi为calm, detached, and content with little striving
- tián恬dàn淡wú无yù欲tranquil and free from worldly desires
- tián恬rán然zì自dé得calmly content and at ease
- tián恬rán然zì自zú足tranquilly self-content
- tián恬yán言róu柔shé舌sweet and flattering words
Questions about 恬不知耻
- What does 恬不知耻 mean?
- 恬不知耻 (tián bù zhī chǐ) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be utterly devoid of shame or embarrassment, especially after committing a wrong or inappropriate act; to brazenly disregard moral boundaries without any sense of guilt”.
- How do you pronounce 恬不知耻?
- 恬不知耻 is pronounced tián bù zhī chǐ in Mandarin Chinese.
- Where does 恬不知耻 come from?
- 恬不知耻 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 恬不知耻?
- 做了坏事满不再乎，一点儿也不感到羞耻。