借古讽今 jiègǔfěngjīn to use the past to disparage the present Origin Definitions Defs Strokes Stroke Words Sentences Sents 借 jiè noun to make use of to take advantage of an opportunity or situation; to avail oneself of; to rely on古 gǔ adjective ancient ancient; old; from the distant past; referring to former times as opposed to the present讽 諷 fěng nounverb to satirize To satirize, mock, or ridicule, often used as a bound form in words like 讽刺 fěngcì or 嘲讽 cháofěng今 jīn modern modern; contemporary (as opposed to ancient 古 gǔ)