📖 Meaning
Literally referring to rotten wood and filthy dirt. It is a metaphor for a person who is beyond education or reform and utterly useless to society. The idiom conveys strong contempt for someone considered incorrigible.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from the Analects of Confucius (《论语·公冶长》), compiled during the Spring and Autumn period. Confucius's disciple Zai Yu was found sleeping during the day, prompting Confucius to remark that rotten wood cannot be carved and a wall of dung cannot be troweled. He then asked what point there was in scolding such a person. Over time, the phrases 'rotten wood' and 'dung dirt' merged into the idiom 朽木粪土, describing someone worthless and beyond redemption.
💡 Example Usage
这种朽木粪土般的人，你再怎么教他也是白费力气。
A worthless person like that is beyond help — no matter how much you teach him, it's a waste of effort.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 朽木粪土
- Pinyin: xiǔ mù fèn tǔ
- Literal Translation: rotten wood, dung dirt
- Category: Quality
- Characters: 4