📖 Meaning
Describes a person with an outwardly plump, well-fed appearance but an empty mind. It is a metaphor for someone who lacks genuine learning or real ability, presenting a full figure while having nothing of substance within. The idiom mocks those whose outward bearing is not matched by actual talent.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom comes from a ci poem titled 《青玉案》 by the Song dynasty poet Liao Xingzhi, which contains the line: '峥嵘岁月还秋暮，空腹便便无好句' (The proud years still reach autumn's dusk; with an empty belly, I have no good verses). In the original line the poet humbly laments that despite advancing years he cannot produce fine poetry, calling himself 空腹便便 — full in appearance but empty within. Because 便便 here means a fat, plump look, the phrase later became a satirical expression for someone who puts on a grand appearance yet has no real scholarship.
💡 Example Usage
别看那人生得空腹便便，其实肚里没有真学问。
Don't be fooled by his plump, well-fed look — he has no real learning in his head.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 空腹便便
- Pinyin: kōng fù pián pián
- Literal Translation: empty, belly, fat, fat
- Category: Knowledge
- Characters: 4