📖 Meaning
To pound one's chest and stamp one's feet in an uncontrollable display of grief, anguish, or deep regret. It vividly depicts a person so overwhelmed by sorrow or remorse that they physically lash out at their own body, unable to contain their emotions. This idiom is a variant of the more common 椎胸顿足.
📜 Origin Story
No specific classical source text is recorded for this exact variant; it is a near-synonym of 椎胸顿足, which appears in earlier Chinese literature. The character 膺 is a more literary term for the chest, often used in classical poetry and prose, giving this version a slightly more refined register. The gesture of beating one's chest and stamping the ground has been a universal expression of extreme mourning across Chinese history, from common folk lamentations to formal funeral rites. The idiom captures that raw, physical manifestation of grief that transcends social status.
💡 Example Usage
听到噩耗，他椎膺顿足，痛哭不止。
Upon hearing the tragic news, he beat his chest and stamped his feet, weeping uncontrollably.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 椎膺顿足
- Pinyin: chuí yīng dùn zú
- Literal Translation: beat, chest, stamp, feet
- Category: Emotion
- Characters: 4