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寧可玉碎，不能瓦全. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
寧可玉碎，不能瓦全, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
寧可玉碎，不能瓦全 in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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寧可玉碎，不能瓦全, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Chinese
Etymology
From Book of Northern Qi (北齊書·元景安傳) first attested in c. 636 CE:
天保時，諸元帝室親近者多被誅戮。疏宗如景安之徒議欲請姓高氏，景皓云：「豈得棄本宗，逐他姓，大丈夫寧可玉碎，不能瓦全！」 [MSC, trad.]
天保时，诸元帝室亲近者多被诛戮。疏宗如景安之徒议欲请姓高氏，景皓云：「岂得弃本宗，逐他姓，大丈夫宁可玉碎，不能瓦全！」 [MSC, simp.]- Tiānbǎo shí, zhū Yuán dìshì qīnjìn zhě duō bèi zhūlù. Shū zōng rú Jǐng'ān zhī tú yì yù qǐng xìng Gāo shì, Jǐnghào yún: “Qǐ dé qì běn zōng, zhú tā xìng, dàzhàngfū níngkě yù suì, bùnéng wǎ quán!”
- In the Tianbao era, those who were related to the Yuan royal family were killed. Some distant family members, like Yuan Jing'an, asked to change their family name to Gao. Yuan Jinghao, however, said, "How can you abandon your original family name, and change it into another one? A real man would rather be a broken piece of jade, rather than be a tile in whole!"
Pronunciation
Proverb
寧可玉碎，不能瓦全
- Dying an honourable death is better than living a dishonourable life
Derived terms