📖 Meaning
No one can harm me anymore. It expresses supreme arrogance and a total disregard for any threat from others, believing oneself to be utterly invincible. The phrase conveys an attitude of looking down upon everyone as powerless against oneself.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from the Zuo Zhuan (左传·僖公二十八年), a chronicle of the Spring and Autumn period. After the decisive Battle of Chengpu in 632 BC, Duke Wen of Jin (晋文公) learned that his formidable rival, the Chu general Ziyu (子玉), had been forced to commit suicide following the Chu defeat. Overjoyed, the duke declared '莫余毒也已'—no one can threaten me anymore—believing that with Ziyu gone, no adversary remained capable of harming his state. Over time, the pronoun 余 (me) was replaced by 予 in the standardized idiom form, giving the expression 莫予毒也.
💡 Example Usage
他仗着权势，以为天下莫予毒也，最终却难逃法网。
Relying on his power, he thought no one in the world could touch him, yet in the end he could not escape the long arm of the law.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 莫予毒也
- Pinyin: mò yù dú yě
- Literal Translation: no one, me, harm, also (particle)
- Category: Attitude
- Characters: 4