📖 Meaning
A fish trapped in a cow's hoofprint puddle. A metaphor for someone whose death is imminent and circumstances are dire. It conveys a sense of being in an desperate, inescapable situation.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from the 'Kongcongzi' (《孔丛子》), a text traditionally attributed to descendants of Confucius, compiled during the Han to Wei-Jin period. The passage compares trying to sustain oneself by relying on others' rent payments to the ancient fable of attempting to divert rivers and seas to save a fish dying in a cow's hoofprint. It illustrates the futility of using grand measures for a hopeless cause. The image of a fish stranded in a tiny puddle symbolizes a person facing imminent doom.
💡 Example Usage
公司资金链断裂，他现在的处境如同牛蹄之鱼，已无回天之力。
With the company's capital chain broken, his situation is like a fish in a cow's hoofprint—beyond saving.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 牛蹄之鱼
- Pinyin: niú tí zhī yú
- Literal Translation: cow, hoof, of, fish
- Category: Condition
- Characters: 4