斷鶴續鳧

Chinese

		to break; to judge; absolutely to break; to judge; absolutely; decidedly	crane	continue; replenish	wild duck; to swim
trad. (斷鶴續鳧)		斷	鶴	續	鳧
simp. (断鹤续凫)		断	鹤	续	凫
alternative forms		續鳧斷鶴／续凫断鹤
Literally: “to shorten the legs of a crane and lengthen those of a wild duck”.

Etymology

From the book Zhuangzi:

長者不為有餘，短者不為不足，是故鳧脛雖短，續之則憂，鶴脛雖長，斷之則悲。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]

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长者不为有余，短者不为不足，是故凫胫虽短，续之则忧，鹤胫虽长，断之则悲。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

From: Zhuangzi, circa 3^rd – 2^nd centuries BCE

Cháng zhě bù wéi yǒuyú, duǎn zhě bù wéi bùzú, shìgù fú jìng suī duǎn, xù zhī zé yōu, hè jìng suī cháng, duàn zhī zé bēi. [Pinyin]

What is long should not be considered too long, nor what is short too short. A duck's legs, for instance, are short, but if we try to lengthen them, it occasions pain; and a crane's legs are long, but if we try to cut off a portion of them, it produces grief.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): duànhèxùfú

  (Zhuyin): ㄉㄨㄢˋ ㄏㄜˋ ㄒㄩˋ ㄈㄨˊ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): dyun⁶ hok⁶ zuk⁶ fu⁴

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: duànhèxùfú
    • Zhuyin: ㄉㄨㄢˋ ㄏㄜˋ ㄒㄩˋ ㄈㄨˊ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: duànhèsyùfú
    • Wade–Giles: tuan⁴-ho⁴-hsü⁴-fu²
    • Yale: dwàn-hè-syù-fú
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: duannhehshiuhfwu
    • Palladius: дуаньхэсюйфу (duanʹxɛsjujfu)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tu̯än⁵¹⁻⁵³ xɤ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ɕy⁵¹ fu³⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: dyun⁶ hok⁶ zuk⁶ fu⁴
    • Yale: dyuhn hohk juhk fùh
    • Cantonese Pinyin: dyn⁶ hok⁹ dzuk⁹ fu⁴
    • Guangdong Romanization: dün⁶ hog⁶ zug⁶ fu⁴
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tyːn²² hɔːk̚² t͡sʊk̚² fuː²¹/

Idiom

斷鶴續鳧

1. (figurative) to go against nature

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (斷鶴續鳧):

• → Japanese: 断鶴続鳧(だんかくぞくふ) (dankakuzokufu)