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葉公好龍. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
葉公好龍, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
葉公好龍 in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
葉公好龍 you have here. The definition of the word
葉公好龍 will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
葉公好龍, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Chinese
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Duke of Ye/She
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to like
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dragon; imperial; surname
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| trad. (葉公好龍)
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葉公
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好
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龍
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| simp. (叶公好龙)
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叶公
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好
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龙
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| Literally: “Duke of Ye/She liking dragons”.
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Etymology
From a parable in 《新序》 (New Prefaces), describing Duke of Ye/She, who was obsessed with drawings of dragons, but fled in terror when he saw a real dragon.
葉公子高好龍，鉤以寫龍，鑿以寫龍，屋室雕文以寫龍。於是天龍聞而下之，窺頭於牖，施尾於堂。葉公見之，棄而還走，失其魂魄，五色無主。是葉公非好龍也，好夫似龍而非龍者也。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
叶公子高好龙，钩以写龙，凿以写龙，屋室雕文以写龙。于是天龙闻而下之，窥头于牖，施尾于堂。叶公见之，弃而还走，失其魂魄，五色无主。是叶公非好龙也，好夫似龙而非龙者也。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]- From: Han Dynasty, New Prefaces (新序), Liu Xiang (劉向)
- Shègōng Zǐgāo hào lóng, gōu yǐ xiě lóng, záo yǐ xiě lóng, wū shì diāo wén yǐ xiě lóng. Yúshì tiānlóng wén ér xià zhī, kuī tóu yú yǒu, yì wěi yú táng. Shègōng jiàn zhī, qì ér xúanzǒu, shī qí húnpò, wǔsèwúzhǔ. Shì Shègōng fēi hào lóng yě, hào fū sì lóng ér fēi lóng zhě yě.
- Duke of Ye/She Zigao liked dragons, dragons drawn on hooks, dragons drawn on wine vessels, dragons drawn at house carvings. So, the dragon in the sky listened then went down, head peeking through the windowsill, tail extended into the hall. Duke of Ye/She saw it, gave up then turned around and ran, losing his soul, extremely terrified. This is Duke of Ye/She not liking dragons, he liked those resembling dragons but are not dragons.
Pronunciation
Idiom
葉公好龍
- to pretend to like something which one actually dislikes or fears