IdiomDaily Life
Chinese
Chinese名落孙山 (míng luò Sūn Shān)
Meaning: To fail an examination.
Literally: One's name falls below Sun Shan
Example: “他今年高考名落孙山，打算明年再考。” — He failed the college entrance exam this year and plans to retake it next year.
Equivalents in other languages
Korean: 미역국을 먹다 (Miyeokgugeul meokda) Literally: To eat seaweed soup
Origin: From Fan Gongcheng's Guoting Lu (Song dynasty): the joker Sun Shan passed the provincial exam in last place, while a neighbor's son, who went with him, failed. Asked how the son had done, Sun Shan replied in verse that the list ended with Sun Shan, "and your worthy son is further down than Sun Shan." Falling below Sun Shan is failing an exam.
More Chinese idioms
- 雪上加霜 (Xuě shàng jiā shuāng) To make a bad situation even worse.
- 五十步笑百步 (Wǔshí bù xiào bǎi bù) Mocking someone for a fault you share, only to a lesser degree.
- 得不偿失 (Dé bù cháng shī) What you gain is less than what it costs you.
- 对牛弹琴 (duì niú tán qín) Reasoning with someone who cannot understand.
- 画蛇添足 (huà shé tiān zú) To ruin something by adding unnecessary extras.
- 鸡同鸭讲 (jī tóng yā jiǎng) Complete miscommunication; talking past each other.
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