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鸡毛蒜皮 (jī máo suàn pí) — trivial matters; petty things; trifles

Definition

A chengyu for 'trifles and trivialities' — petty, insignificant matters not worth serious attention. Often used with 的 to modify nouns (鸡毛蒜皮的小事) or with 上 (…的鸡毛蒜皮上).

idiom
trivial matterspetty thingstrifles

Examples

  • 鸡毛蒜皮，。
    Zhè xiē jī máo suàn pí de xiǎo shì, bù zhí dé shēng qì.
    These trivial little things aren't worth getting angry about.
  • 鸡毛蒜皮。
    Fū qī zhī jiān bú yào zǒng shì wèi jī máo suàn pí chǎo jià.
    Couples shouldn't always quarrel over trifles.
  • 鸡毛蒜皮，。
    Bié bǎ shí jiān làng fèi zài jī máo suàn pí shàng, zuò diǎn zhèng shì ba.
    Don't waste time on trivial matters; do something productive.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

鸡毛chicken feather
鸡jīchicken毛máofeather
偏正Modifier + head
蒜皮garlic skin
蒜suàngarlic皮pískin
偏正Modifier + head

鸡毛 and 蒜皮 are the smallest bits of a chicken and garlic, naming trifles.

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 雞; 鸡 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
隹隹zhuīshort-tailed bird
Sound part声符shēngfú
奚
奚xī雞jī
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 雞 pairs 奚, which gives the sound, with 隹, a short-tailed bird. The simplified 鸡 is a later shorthand, and its right side is not the historical 奚.

Open 鸡 →

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

毛 is drawn as a feather or hair, with its strokes tracing the shape of the feather or hair.

Open 毛 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 蒜 →

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

皮 shows a hand pulling fur off an animal pelt, with the pelt drawn at the upper left.

Open 皮 →
Appears in
Abstract ConceptsIdioms & Set Phrases

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