假阶救火 — “Borrow a ladder to put out a fire”
假阶救火 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be extremely inefficient or rigid in handling an urgent situation, often by adhering to unnecessary procedures or formalities when direct and prompt action is required; to be overly bureaucratic or mechanical when faced with an emergency”. Literally, “Borrow a ladder to put out a fire”.
假阶救火 Pronunciation and Pinyin
假阶救火 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 假阶救火
Origin and Story of 假阶救火
In ancient times, in the state of Zhao, Chenyang Kan's house caught fire. He urgently sent his son, Chenyang Na, to Ben Shui's house to borrow a ladder.
However, Chenyang Na proceeded at a leisurely pace, and upon arriving at Ben Shui's house, he unhurriedly joined the host at a banquet.
Only when Ben Shui eventually inquired about his visit did Chenyang Na calmly explain that his house was ablaze and he needed to borrow a ladder to extinguish the flames. Ben Shui was furious, immediately scolding him for his rigid and impractical thinking. He quickly dispatched servants with a ladder to help.
But by the time they reached Chenyang Kan's residence, the house had already burned to the ground, leaving only ashes.
Idioms Related to 假阶救火
Antonyms of 假阶救火
More idioms starting with 假
- jiǎ假rén人jiǎ假yì义feigned benevolence and righteousness
- jiǎ假rén人cí辞sè色feign amiability or kindness
- jiǎ假rén仁jiǎ假yì义feigned kindness and morality
- jiǎ假rén仁jiǎ假yì意feigned benevolence and false intentions
- jiǎ假rén仁zòng纵dí敌Feigned benevolence indulging the enemy
- jiǎ假yǐ以cí辞sè色treat with a kindly manner and gentle words
- jiǎ假gōng公jì济sī私use public office for private gain
- jiǎ假gōng公yíng营sī私abuse public office for private gain
- jiǎ假lì力yú于rén人leverage others' strength
- jiǎ假míng名tuō托xìng姓assume a false name
- jiǎ假qíng情jiǎ假yì意feigned affection, false intention
- jiǎ假xīng惺xīng惺feigned sincerity or compassion
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Open the tool →Questions about 假阶救火
What does 假阶救火 mean?
假阶救火 (jiǎ jiē jiù huǒ) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be extremely inefficient or rigid in handling an urgent situation, often by adhering to unnecessary procedures or formalities when direct and prompt action is required; to be overly bureaucratic or mechanical when faced with an emergency”.
How do you pronounce 假阶救火?
假阶救火 is pronounced jiǎ jiē jiù huǒ in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 假阶救火 literally mean?
Literally, 假阶救火 means “Borrow a ladder to put out a fire”. It is used to mean “to be extremely inefficient or rigid in handling an urgent situation, often by adhering to unnecessary procedures or formalities when direct and prompt action is required; to be overly bureaucratic or mechanical when faced with an emergency”.
Where does 假阶救火 come from?
假阶救火 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 假阶救火?
假：借；阶：梯子。比喻做事不讲效率，做事机械