📖 Meaning
This idiom describes a situation where two people's relationship has deteriorated to the point of open confrontation. It refers to abandoning all pretense of civility and engaging in a public quarrel or falling out, with both sides no longer caring about saving face.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from Lu Xun's supplementary collection 'Jiwai Ji Shiyi Bubian' (《集外集拾遗补编》), in the essay 'Women Are No Good Either' (《娘儿们也不行》), written during the Republican era of early 20th-century China. Lu Xun wryly observed that although women did not use machine guns when fighting, they would readily 'scratch each other's faces' — that is, tear into each other openly — which was trouble enough. The phrase captures the vivid image of a physical altercation as a metaphor for the breakdown of social decorum in a relationship.
💡 Example Usage
他们俩因为钱的事抓破脸皮，现在见面都不说话了。
The two of them scratched each other's faces over money, and now they don't even speak when they meet.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 抓破脸皮
- Pinyin: zhuā pò liǎn pí
- Literal Translation: scratch, break, face, skin
- Category: Communication
- Characters: 4