📖 Meaning
To live under the shelter and support of one's parents, enjoying their provision without having to earn one's own keep. It describes a life of dependence on parental care. The phrase is a variant of the more common 爷饭娘羹.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from the Yuan dynasty play 《范张鸡黍》(Fan and Zhang's Chicken and Millet) by the playwright 宫天挺 (Gong Tianting). In the first act, a character remarks that someone was born into a life of '爷羹娘饭长生运' — a fortunate destiny of living off father's soup and mother's rice. The phrase evokes the image of a child nourished entirely by parental provision. A later usage appears in the Ming dynasty anonymous play 《渔樵闲话》(Idle Talk of Fisherman and Woodcutter), Act 3.
💡 Example Usage
那个泼皮见成吃着爷羹娘饭，又要偷家理财物。
That scoundrel lives comfortably on his parents' provision, yet still steals from the household wealth.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 爷羹娘饭
- Pinyin: yé gēng niáng fàn
- Literal Translation: father's soup, mother's rice
- Category: Lifestyle
- Characters: 4