丧家之犬 (sàng jiā zhī quǎn) — (fig.) a person who has lost their support and has nowhere to turn; a down-and-out person; (noun, original meaning) stray dog; homeless dog (literal meaning of 丧家之犬)

Definition

A literary set phrase (成语) literally meaning a 'stray dog that has lost its home,' used figuratively for a person who has lost all support and has nowhere to turn. In modern usage the figurative sense dominates.

noun
(fig.) a person who has lost their support and has nowhere to turna down-and-out person(noun, original meaning) stray doghomeless dog (literal meaning of 丧家之犬)

Examples

  • ，丧家之犬。
    Tā bèi rén gǎn chū lái, xiàng yì tiáo sàng jiā zhī quǎn yí yàng méi dì fāng qù.
    He was driven out by others, like a stray dog with nowhere to go.
  • ，丧家之犬，。
    Zhàn luàn guò hòu, hěn duō píng mín chéng le sàng jiā zhī quǎn, sì chù liú làng.
    After the war, many civilians became homeless stray dogs, wandering everywhere.
  • ，，丧家之犬。
    Tā pò chǎn zhī hòu, péng you dōu yuǎn lí tā, tā jué de zì jǐ xiàng yì zhī sàng jiā zhī quǎn.
    After he went bankrupt, his friends all kept their distance, and he felt like an outcast.

Origin

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 喪; 丧 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
㗊㗊㗊many mouths
Sound part声符shēngfú
桑
桑sāng喪sàng
Same sound today

The traditional form 喪 originally paired 桑 (mulberry tree) with 㗊 (many mouths). The simplified 丧 is the modern form, deriving from a form that used 哭 (cry) and 亡 (die).

Open 丧 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
宀宀miánroof
Sound part声符shēngfú
𢑓
𢑓𢑓家jiā
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The early drawing of 家 showed a roof 宀 over a male-pig sign 𢑓 that gave the pronunciation; the lower part later changed shape.

Open 家 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

The shape pairs 止, a foot, with 一, a beginning place, and means to go.

Open 之 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

犬 is a drawing of a dog seen from the side.

Open 犬 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.