📖 Meaning
This idiom describes pestering someone relentlessly and refusing to take no for an answer. It conveys the image of someone who begs and entangles another person endlessly until they get what they want. It is a variant of the more common form 死乞白赖.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom is a variant of the more commonly written 死乞白赖, which emerged in vernacular Chinese fiction of the Ming and Qing dynasties. The character 百 (hundred) replaces 白 (white/empty), but the meaning remains the same. Such variant forms were common in popular literature where scribes and authors used interchangeable homophones. No single classical source is attributed to this specific variant spelling.
💡 Example Usage
他死乞百赖地求着邻居借钱给他，让人烦透了。
He pestered his neighbor relentlessly to borrow money, annoying everyone to death.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 死乞百赖
- Pinyin: sǐ qǐ bǎi lài
- Literal Translation: die, beg, hundred, rely on
- Category: Attitude
- Characters: 4