石崇斗奢 — “To compete in extravagance”

石崇斗奢 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to compete in extravagance”. To vie with each other in ostentatious displays of wealth and luxury, often leading to extreme waste. Literally, “Shi Chong competing in extravagance”.

Frequency

石崇斗奢 Pronunciation and Pinyin

石崇斗奢 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
石	shí	5	Rock, stone
崇	chóng	11	to revere or worship
斗	dòu	4	fight, struggle, contend
奢	shē	12	extravagant, luxurious, excessive

Example Sentence with 石崇斗奢

在那个时代，一些权贵阶层为了彰显地位，动辄石崇斗奢，完全不顾及社会资源的合理分配。

In that era, some powerful figures, in order to display their status, often engaged in lavish competitions, completely disregarding the equitable distribution of social resources.

Origin and Story of 石崇斗奢

During the Western Jin Dynasty, Shi Chong, who was the Inspector of Jingzhou, accumulated immense wealth by robbing foreign merchants. Later, he was transferred to the capital to serve as a palace guard (Wei Wei) and engaged in extravagant spending.

Wang Kai, the uncle of Emperor Wu of Jin, also went to great lengths to be ostentatious and devised ways to compete in wealth with Shi Chong.

One day, Wang Kai acquired a magnificent coral tree and, feeling very proud, brought it to Shi Chong's residence to show off.

Shi Chong then casually brought out six or seven even grander coral trees, offering them to Wang Kai. Seeing this, Wang Kai had no choice but to admit his defeat.