📖 Meaning
Beyond cure; a problem so deeply rooted it cannot be fixed. Originally referred to terminal illness.
📜 Origin Story
From the Zuo Zhuan: a doctor examined the Duke of Jin and declared his illness had entered the gao and huang regions (above and below the heart), where medicine could not reach.
💡 Example Usage
这家公司的腐败已经病入膏肓。
The corruption in this company has reached the incurable stage.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 病入膏肓
- Pinyin: bìng rù gāo huāng
- Literal Translation: illness enters vital regions
- Category: Condition
- Characters: 4