harm oneself for material gain; put trivial above important
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 3 examplesidiom
to cut open one's belly to hide a pearl; to harm oneself for the sake of material things; to put the trivial above the important
literaryThis classical idiom criticizes the folly of valuing material possessions over one's own well-being or life. Often used to describe sacrificing health, ethics, or long-term interests for short-term material gains.
Wèi为
le了
zhè这
diǎn点
xiǎo小
lì利
ér而
sǔn损
shāng伤
shēn身
tǐ体
，
jiǎn简
zhí直
shì是
pōu剖
fù腹
cáng藏
zhū珠
。
Harming your health for such small profits is simply cutting open your belly to hide a pearl.
Tā他
pīn拼
mìng命
jiā加
bān班
zhuàn赚
qián钱
，
zuì最
hòu后
lèi累
kuǎ垮
le了
shēn身
tǐ体
，
zhēn真
shì是
pōu剖
fù腹
cáng藏
zhū珠
，
dé得
bù不
cháng偿
shī失
。
He worked overtime desperately to earn money and finally ruined his health—truly cutting open his belly to hide a pearl, the loss outweighing the gain.
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Nà那
xiē些
tān贪
guān官
wū污
lì吏
wèi为
le了
qián钱
cái财
bù不
zé择
shǒu手
duàn段
，
zuì最
zhōng终
shēn身
xiàn陷
líng囹
yǔ圄
，
kě可
wèi谓
shì是
pōu剖
fù腹
cáng藏
zhū珠
。
Those corrupt officials stopped at nothing for money and finally ended up in prison—truly cutting open their bellies to hide pearls.