盲人摸象
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Chinese
| blind person | feel with the hand; to touch; to stroke feel with the hand; to touch; to stroke; to grope; to feel (one's pulse); imitate; copy |
shape; form; appearance shape; form; appearance; elephant; image under a map (maths) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| trad. (盲人摸象) | 盲人 | 摸 | 象 | |
| simp. #(盲人摸象) | 盲人 | 摸 | 象 | |
| Literally: “The blind man touches some parts of an elephant (and concludes what an elephant looks like).” | ||||
Etymology
From the Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra. See Blind men and an elephant.
Pronunciation
- Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)+
- Hanyu Pinyin:
- Zhuyin: ㄇㄤˊ ㄖㄣˊ ㄇㄛ ㄒㄧㄤˋ
- Tongyong Pinyin: mángrénmosiàng
- Wade–Giles: mang2-jên2-mo1-hsiang4
- Yale: máng-rén-mwō-syàng
- Gwoyeu Romatzyh: mangrenmhoshianq
- Palladius: манжэньмосян (manžɛnʹmosjan)
- Sinological IPA (key): /mɑŋ³⁵ ʐən³⁵ mu̯ɔ⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵¹/
- (Standard Chinese)+
- Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)+
- Jyutping: maang4 jan4 mo2 zoeng6
- Yale: màahng yàhn mó jeuhng
- Cantonese Pinyin: maang4 jan4 mo2 dzoeng6
- Guangdong Romanization: mang4 yen4 mo2 zêng6
- Sinological IPA (key): /maːŋ²¹ jɐn²¹ mɔː³⁵ t͡sœːŋ²²/
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)+
Idiom
盲人摸象
- (figurative) to draw (incorrect) conclusions from partial understanding