買櫝還珠

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Chinese

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buy cabinet; case; casket
pay back; return; also
pay back; return; also; in addition; more; still; else; yet; (not) yet
 
pearl; bead
trad. (買櫝還珠)
simp. (买椟还珠)
Literally: “to buy a wooden box and return the pearls inside”.

Etymology

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From Han Feizi, Chapter 32 (《韓非子·外儲說左上》). Originally meant to criticize those who put too much rhetoric into their writings, causing people to be impressed with their words but miss their useful ideas.

木蘭桂椒珠玉玫瑰翡翠可謂可謂 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
木兰桂椒珠玉玫瑰翡翠可谓可谓 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
From: Han Feizi, circa 2nd century BCE, translated based on W. K. Liao's version
Chǔ rén yǒu mài qí zhū yú Zhèng zhě, wéi mùlán zhī dú, xūn yǐ guìjiāo, zhuì yǐ zhūyù, shì yǐ méiguī, jí yǐ fěicuì. Zhèng rén mǎi ér huánzhū. Cǐ kěwèi shàn mài dú yǐ, wèi kěwèi shàn yù zhū yě. [Pinyin]
Once upon a time a man of Chu was selling pearls in Zheng. For the pearls he made magnolia boxes, which he perfumed with cassia spice, bound with beads, decorated them with red gems, and filled harmoniously with the kingfisher's feather. In the long run people in Zheng bought the caskets but returned the pearls. This may be said to be good in selling caskets but cannot be said to be good in trading pearls.

Pronunciation

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Idiom

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買櫝還珠

  1. (figurative) to show poor judgement