郢书燕说
Traditional form:
郢書燕說
Pinyin (reading):
Yǐngshū Yānshuō
Definitions:
- lit. Ying writes a letter and Yan reads it
- fig. to misinterpret the original meaning
- to pile up errors
- refers to the letter from capital 郢 ( Yǐng) of 楚 ( Chǔ) in which the inadvertent words "hold up the candle" are mistaken by the minister of 燕 ( Yān) as "promote the wise"
Characters:
- 郢 - a state in Hubei province
- 书 - book, letter, document; writing
- 燕 - lovebird, swallow
- 说 - to speak, to say; to scold, to upbraid
Traditional characters: