Our free Chinese learning series introduces idioms and proverbs. These timeless phrases hold valuable meanings and are worth studying. Today’s idiom is 「南蠻鴃舌」, detailed below.
The featured idiom 「南蠻鴃舌」 is explained here, including its meaning and how to use it.
鴃: that is, shrike. Originally it was Mencius who ridiculed Xu Xing, a man from Chu, for speaking like a bird. Later it was used to ridicule people who spoke southern dialects.
The Mandarin pronunciation of this idiom is :
nán mán guī shé
while its Cantonese pinyin is :
naam4 maan4 gwik1 sit3
The vastness of Chinese idioms, with their many meanings and applications, is inspiring. We hope these resources will guide you in your language-learning adventure.
