TongTong
Sign in

屠龙 (tú lóng) — (noun) a highly refined skill with no practical application; a useless art

Definition

屠龙 is used figuratively in the idiom 屠龙之术 — a brilliant skill with no real use, like 'slaying a dragon' when no dragons exist. Coined in Zhuangzi (庄子) to mock impractical learning.

noun
a highly refined skill with no practical applicationa useless art

Examples

  • 屠龙，。
    Tā huā le hěn duō nián yán jiū zhè mén tú lóng zhī shù, kě xī háo wú yòng chu.
    He spent many years studying this dragon-slaying art, but unfortunately it's completely useless.
  • ，屠龙。
    Zhè zhǒng lǐ lùn suī rán jīng miào, què bú guò shì tú lóng zhī jì.
    This theory, though exquisite, is nothing more than a dragon-slaying skill.
  • ，屠龙。
    Zài shí yòng zhǔ yì zhě kàn lái, tā de xué wèn wú yì yú tú lóng.
    From a pragmatist's perspective, his knowledge is no different from dragon-slaying.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

屠túslaughter
龙lóngdragon

屠 means to slaughter, and 龙 is the dragon; the phrase names a lofty but impractical feat.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
尸尸shībody
Sound part声符shēngfú
者
者zhě屠tú
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

屠 combines 尸 (body) with 者, which gives the sound.

Open 屠 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 龍; 龙 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 龍 originally drew a sacred creature with a large mouth and a snake-like body; the simplified 龙 is the form written here.

Open 龙 →
Appears in
Mythology & Folklore

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