📖 Meaning
A colloquial expression referring to minor ailments, everyday aches and pains, or trivial misfortunes. It describes the kind of small, passing troubles that everyone experiences from time to time and that are not worth worrying over.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from Act 1 of the Yuan dynasty zaju play 'Kan Tou Jin' (《勘头巾》, 'Examining the Headscarf') by the playwright Sun Zhongzhang (孙仲章). In the play, a character is told that within a hundred days, should any minor illness befall someone, the responsibility would fall on them. The phrase was later popularized in modern literature by Lao She, who used it in his novel 'Four Generations Under One Roof' (《四世同堂》) to liken the city of Beiping's hardships to a person's inevitable minor ailments.
💡 Example Usage
人上了年纪，偶尔头疼脑热是难免的，不必太过担心。
As one gets older, the occasional headache or minor ailment is inevitable, so there is no need to worry too much.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 头疼脑热
- Pinyin: tóu téng nǎo rè
- Literal Translation: head ache, brain hot
- Category: Condition
- Characters: 4