📖 Meaning
A metaphor for bringing disaster upon oneself through one's own foolish actions. Like directing water into your own wall, which inevitably damages it, it describes self-inflicted harm. It serves as a warning against reckless choices that invite misfortune.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase originates from the Qing dynasty novel 'Ernü Yingxiong Zhuan' (儿女英雄传) by Wen Kang (文康), specifically in Chapter 4. In the original passage, a character rhetorically asks whether his own conduct amounts to '引水入墙' — channeling water into his own wall — paired with the related expression '开门揖盗' (opening the door to invite the thief in). The vivid image of deliberately flooding one's own wall captures the folly of causing one's own ruin through careless decisions.
💡 Example Usage
明知那人不可靠还把机密告诉他，这不是引水入墙吗？
Knowing that person is unreliable yet still telling him the secret — isn't that just bringing disaster upon oneself?
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 引水入墙
- Pinyin: yǐn shuǐ rù qiáng
- Literal Translation: channel, water, into, wall
- Category: Action
- Characters: 4