📖 Meaning
Describes a person whose moral character is so base and despicable that they are not even the equal of dogs and pigs. It is a harsh condemnation of extreme moral depravity and shameful conduct. The phrase is a variant of the older expression 狗彘不若.
📜 Origin Story
This phrase appears in Chapter 48 of the Qing dynasty novel 飞龙全传 (The Complete Legend of the Flying Dragon) by Wu Xuan. In the story, a minister declares that when a ruler faces peril, the minister should disregard his own safety and rush to the rescue rather than speak of retreat, saying anyone who would retreat would be 'worse than dogs and pigs.' The expression draws on the older classical phrase 狗彘不若, found in the writings of the philosopher Xunzi, which similarly denounces those lacking basic human decency. Over time it became a severe insult reserved for the most morally reprehensible individuals.
💡 Example Usage
他做出这种伤天害理的事，真是狗彘不如。
By committing such heinous and conscienceless acts, he is truly worse than dogs and pigs.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 狗彘不如
- Pinyin: gǒu zhì bù rú
- Literal Translation: dog, pig, not, like
- Category: Morality
- Characters: 4