📖 Meaning
A crow turning white and a horse growing horns. It metaphorically refers to something that is utterly impossible to achieve. The phrase originates from an absurd condition set by the King of Qin.
📜 Origin Story
During the Warring States period, Crown Prince Dan of Yan was held hostage in the state of Qin. The King of Qin treated him with disrespect, and Dan sought permission to return home. The King refused and set an impossible condition, saying he would only allow it if a crow's head turned white and a horse grew horns. Since such things could never happen, the idiom came to symbolize an unattainable wish or an impossible demand.
💡 Example Usage
这种不切实际的幻想如同乌白马角，永远无法实现。
Such an impractical fantasy is like a white crow and a horned horse—it can never be realized.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 乌白马角
- Pinyin: wū bái mǎ jiǎo
- Literal Translation: crow, white, horse, horn
- Category: Logic
- Characters: 4