📖 Meaning
Refers to a person of low status and insufficient prestige or reputation. It is most often used as a self-deprecating expression when declining a position or responsibility.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from a memorial by Yue Fei, a renowned general of the Southern Song dynasty, titled 'Memorial Requesting to be Relieved of the Office of Zhi Zhi Shi' (奏乞罢制置使职事状). In it, Yue Fei humbly asked to be relieved of his commanding post, stating that his status was lowly and his reputation insufficient to bear such weighty responsibility. The phrase thus came to signify modest self-assessment of one's standing and influence.
💡 Example Usage
臣人微望轻，恐难当此重任。
My status is lowly and my reputation slight; I fear I am unequal to such a heavy responsibility.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 人微望轻
- Pinyin: rén wēi wàng qīng
- Literal Translation: person, lowly, prestige, light
- Category: Status
- Characters: 4