丧尽天良 (sàng jìn tiān liáng) — totally devoid of conscience; cruel and heartless

Definition

A strong chengyu meaning 'utterly without conscience'. Used in formal writing or news reports to condemn a single cruel act or a heartless person.

idiom
totally devoid of consciencecruel and heartless

Examples

  • ，丧尽天良。
    Tā wèi le qián cái shā hài qīn rén, zhēn shì sàng jìn tiān liáng.
    He killed his own family for money — he's truly devoid of conscience.
  • 丧尽天良。
    Zhè zhǒng sàng jìn tiān liáng de xíng wéi yí dìng huì shòu dào fǎ lǜ de chéng fá.
    Such heartless acts will surely be punished by the law.
  • 丧尽天良，。
    Nà ge zhà piàn tuán huǒ sàng jìn tiān liáng, lián lǎo rén de jiù mìng qián dōu piàn.
    That fraud ring is completely heartless — they even scammed the old man's life-saving money.

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 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 盡; 尽 is its simplified writing.

  • 聿聿yùhand holding a brush
  • 灬灬huǒbristles
  • 皿皿mǐndish

The traditional form 盡 shows 聿 (hand holding a brush) and 灬 (bristles) over 皿 (dish), cleaning a dish until it is empty. The simplified 尽 is a shorthand, not those historical parts.

Open 尽 →

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
大大dà
Sound part声符shēngfú
丁
丁dīng天tiān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The shape comes from a frontal standing man 大 with a head; 天 pairs 大 with 丁 for sound.

Open 天 →

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

良 possibly depicts corridors and a room.

Open 良 →

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