📖 Meaning
Refers to ancient books or manuscripts that are incomplete, fragmentary, or damaged. It describes literary works, paintings, or calligraphy that have survived in scattered, tattered pieces rather than as whole volumes.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom first appears in Hu Yinglin's 'Shaoshi Shanfang Bicong' (《少室山房笔丛》) from the Ming Dynasty. Hu observed that ancient texts, having endured centuries of warfare, dynastic upheaval, and the passage of time, often survive only as broken bindings and torn pages — mere fragments that exist as titles in catalogs. He noted that compilers of bibliographies would list these works by name but refrain from discussing their content, since so little remained. The phrase captures the melancholy reality of classical textual transmission, where countless works were reduced to scattered remnants.
💡 Example Usage
他在旧书摊上翻到几册残编裂简，如获至宝。
He came across a few tattered, fragmentary volumes at a used book stall and treasured them as if they were priceless gems.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 残编裂简
- Pinyin: cán biān liè jiǎn
- Literal Translation: broken, binding, torn, bamboo-slip
- Category: Knowledge
- Characters: 4