望梅止渴

Chinese

		hope; expect; to visit hope; expect; to visit; to gaze (into the distance); look towards; towards	plum flower	to quench one's thirst
trad. (望梅止渴)		望	梅	止渴
simp. #(望梅止渴)		望	梅	止渴
Literally: “to quench one's thirst by thinking of plums”.

Etymology

From the tale of the warlord Cao Cao deceiving his severely dehydrated troops with the promise of a forest of plums not far ahead.

魏武行役，失汲道，軍皆渴，乃令曰：「前有大梅林，饒子，甘酸，可以解渴。」士卒聞之，口皆出水，乘此得及前源。 [Literary Chinese, trad.]

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魏武行役，失汲道，军皆渴，乃令曰：「前有大梅林，饶子，甘酸，可以解渴。」士卒闻之，口皆出水，乘此得及前源。 [Literary Chinese, simp.]

From: Liu Yiqing (editor), A New Account of the Tales of the World, 5^th century CE

Wèi Wǔ xíng yì, shī jí dào, jūn jiē kě, nǎi lìng yuē: “Qián yǒu dà méilín, ráo zǐ, gān suān, kěyǐ jiěkě.” Shìzú wén zhī, kǒu jiē chūshuǐ, chéng cǐ dé jí qián yuán. [Pinyin]

Emperor Wu of Wei (Cao Cao) was leading his army., but failed to find a path with water source, and his army was thirty. He then ordered, “There is a big plum forest ahead with many fruits. They are very sweet and sour and you can relieve your thirst there.” When the army heard what he said, they drooled and then they seized the opportunity to reach the water source ahead

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): wàngméizhǐkě

  (Zhuyin): ㄨㄤˋ ㄇㄟˊ ㄓˇ ㄎㄜˇ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): mong⁶ mui⁴ zi² hot³
• Southern Min (Teochew, Peng'im): mo⁷ bhuê⁵ zi² guah⁴

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: wàngméizhǐkě [Phonetic: wàngméizhíkě]
    • Zhuyin: ㄨㄤˋ ㄇㄟˊ ㄓˇ ㄎㄜˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: wàngméijhǐhkě
    • Wade–Giles: wang⁴-mei²-chih³-kʻo³
    • Yale: wàng-méi-jř-kě
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: wanqmeijyykee
    • Palladius: ванмэйчжикэ (vanmɛjčžikɛ)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /wɑŋ⁵¹ meɪ̯³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻³⁵ kʰɤ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: mong⁶ mui⁴ zi² hot³
    • Yale: mohng mùih jí hot
    • Cantonese Pinyin: mong⁶ mui⁴ dzi² hot⁸
    • Guangdong Romanization: mong⁶ mui⁴ ji² hod³
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mɔːŋ²² muːi̯²¹ t͡siː³⁵ hɔːt̚³/
• Southern Min
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: mo⁷ bhuê⁵ zi² guah⁴
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: mō buê tsí kuah
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mo¹¹ bue⁵⁵⁻¹¹ t͡si⁵²⁻³⁵ kuaʔ²/

Idiom

望梅止渴

1. to console oneself with illusions

See also

• 畫餅充飢／画饼充饥 (huàbǐngchōngjī)