📖 Meaning
A metaphor for extremely rare and precious delicacies. It describes food so extraordinary and hard to obtain that it is likened to the liver of a dragon and the fetus of a leopard. The phrase emphasizes the utmost rarity and value of the food in question.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from the 'Book of Jin, Biography of Pan Ni' (《晋书·潘尼传》), a text from the Tang dynasty compiling the history of the Western Jin period. Pan Ni (潘尼), a literary figure of the Western Jin dynasty, wrote in a poetic piece describing lavish banquets: 'What are the dishes? Dragon liver and leopard fetus.' By invoking a mythical dragon and an exotic leopard, he emphasized the extraordinary rarity and preciousness of the finest delicacies imaginable.
💡 Example Usage
宴席上山珍海味一应俱全，仿佛龙肝豹胎也不过如此。
The banquet featured every imaginable delicacy, as if even dragon liver and leopard fetus would pale in comparison.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 龙肝豹胎
- Pinyin: lóng gān bào tāi
- Literal Translation: dragon liver, leopard fetus
- Category: Quality
- Characters: 4