嬰鱗
yīng​lín

to offend a ruler

  • created reference approved 婴鳞/嬰鱗 → 逆鳞/逆鱗 (synonym) — "Initial import from upstream dictionary"

    婴鳞 / 嬰鱗 yīng​lín

    逆鳞 / 逆鱗 nì​lín

    synonym

    Changed: source (simp), source (trad), source pinyin, target (simp), target (trad), target pinyin, type

    created reference

  • created sense approved 婴鳞/嬰鱗 · yīng​lín · to offend a ruler — "Initial import from upstream dictionary"

    婴鳞 / 嬰鱗

    yīng​lín

    to offend a ruler

    to offend a ruler or someone in power by offering blunt criticism; to touch the dragon's inverted scales. This term is often used to describe a courageous official who risks death by speaking the truth to a monarch.

    婴 (literal) → 婴/嬰 · yīng · to provoke 鳞 (literal) → 鳞/鱗 · lín · scales

    Changed: simplified, traditional, gloss, definition, pinyin, variant pinyin, variants, separable parts, decomposition

    created sense