📖 Meaning
Refers to the few remaining bricks, tiles, and wooden beams left after a building has been destroyed. It describes the meager remnants surviving devastation, when almost nothing is left. The phrase conveys a sense of utter ruin and scarcity.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase comes from Chen Liang's 'Record of Rebuilding Zixiao Temple' (重建紫霄观记) written during the Song Dynasty. After bandits were finally suppressed, not a single rafter or tile remained that could offer shelter—the Daoist priests had no choice but to live in hastily built thatched huts. The passage vividly illustrates the complete devastation wrought by war and looting, leaving nothing but scattered fragments behind.
💡 Example Usage
经战火洗劫，这座千年古刹已无尺椽片瓦可寻。
After the ravages of war, not a single rafter or tile of this thousand-year-old temple could be found.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 尺椽片瓦
- Pinyin: chǐ chuán piàn wǎ
- Literal Translation: foot of rafter, piece of tile
- Category: Condition
- Characters: 4