馬首是瞻
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Chinese[edit]
horse; surname | head; chief; first (occasion) head; chief; first (occasion); first (thing); measure word for poems |
be; yes; this | gaze; view | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
trad. (馬首是瞻) | 馬 | 首 | 是 | 瞻 | |
simp. (马首是瞻) | 马 | 首 | 是 | 瞻 |
Etymology[edit]
From Zuo Zhuan, Duke Xiang, Year 14 (《左傳·襄公十四年》):
- 荀偃令曰:「雞鳴而駕,塞井夷灶,唯余馬首是瞻!」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
- From: Commentary of Zuo, c. 4th century BCE, translated based on James Legge's version
- Xún Yǎn lìng yuē: “Jīmíng ér jià, sè jǐng yí zào, wéi yú mǎshǒu shì zhān!” [Pinyin]
- Xun Yan (荀偃) ordered, "At cockcrow, yoke your chariots, fill up the wells and level your furnaces. Look only at my horses' heads, [and follow me]!"
荀偃令曰:「鸡鸣而驾,塞井夷灶,唯余马首是瞻!」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
Pronunciation[edit]
Idiom[edit]
馬首是瞻
Usage notes[edit]
Although generally considered as a chengyu, this term almost always appears as part of the construct 唯……馬首是瞻, which is an instance of the general pattern 唯……是……. Compare 唯命是從/唯命是从 (wéimìngshìcóng) and 唯利是圖/唯利是图 (wéilìshìtú).
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