📖 Meaning
囷 (qūn) refers to a round granary. To point at one's granary and give away the grain inside describes generously providing material aid to a friend in need. It depicts open-hearted generosity and selfless support in friendship.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom stems from the late Eastern Han dynasty, when the wealthy landowner Lu Su befriended Zhou Yu, then a local prefect short on military grain. Lu Su owned two round granaries, each holding three thousand hu of grain, and pointed to one, giving it entirely to Zhou Yu without hesitation. Ming dynasty novelist Luo Guanzhong later dramatized this act in Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Chapter 54), where Zhou Yu recalls Lu Su's 'pointing to the granary to give' as a debt of gratitude worth repaying. The phrase has since become a metaphor for generous material assistance extended to friends.
💡 Example Usage
他在朋友创业最困难时指囷相赠，无偿提供了大量资金支持。
When his friend's startup was in its most difficult moment, he generously provided substantial financial support without expecting anything in return.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 指囷相赠
- Pinyin: zhǐ què xiāng zèng
- Literal Translation: point, granary, mutually, gift
- Category: Morality
- Characters: 4