📖 Meaning
"Fāng tóu" (square head) colloquially refers to someone who is out of touch with the times and inflexible; "bù liè" means stubborn and unyielding. The idiom describes a person with a stubborn, obstinate personality who refuses to yield or adapt to circumstances.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from the Yuan dynasty playwright Guan Hanqing's play "Qian Dayin Zhikan Feiyi Meng" (钱大尹智勘绯衣梦, "Prefect Qian's Clever Investigation of the Crimson Robe Dream"), in the fourth act. In the play, a character mentions someone named Pei Yan, describing him as "好生方头不劣" — exceptionally stubborn and unruly. The expression reflects the colloquial speech of the Yuan period, where "square head" metaphorically characterized someone rigidly unaccommodating and defiant.
💡 Example Usage
他性格方头不劣，旁人怎么劝都不听。
He is so stubborn and obstinate that no matter how others try to persuade him, he refuses to listen.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 方头不劣
- Pinyin: fāng tóu bù liè
- Literal Translation: square, head, not, inferior
- Category: Attitude
- Characters: 4