諺語 · a single proverb
畫虎類犬
Simplified: 画虎类犬
What does 畫虎類犬 (huà hǔ lèi quǎn) mean?
畫虎類犬 (huà hǔ lèi quǎn) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "painting a tiger that looks like a dog." In use it means: An ambitious attempt that ends in an embarrassing result; overreaching your abilities produces something worse than staying modest. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Fire note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Dog.
Literally: "painting a tiger that looks like a dog."
The reading
He wanted a tiger and got a dog. The ambition was not the problem. The gap between ambition and skill was the problem. Aim high, but train your hand before you pick up the brush. Otherwise the tiger you imagine and the dog you produce will stand side by side as a lesson in what you were not ready for.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Book of the Later Han 後漢書, Ma Yuan biography (馬援傳)
Sits beside
井底之蛙
jǐng dǐ zhī wā
Someone with an extremely narrow view of the world, who mistakes the small circle of sky above the well for the whole sky.
冰凍三尺，非一日之寒
bīng dòng sān chǐ, fēi yī rì zhī hán
Nothing deep-a skill, a habit, a ruin-forms overnight.
心急吃不了熱豆腐
xīn jí chī bù liǎo rè dòu fu
Impatience will not speed things up.
Keep reading
Return to the Proverb Pond to draw another of the eighty-seven, or hear one read aloud. Read the rest of its chapter in Humility & Self-Mastery, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Dog, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.
Questions
Is 畫虎類犬 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 畫虎類犬 (huà hǔ lèi quǎn) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from Book of the Later Han 後漢書, Ma Yuan biography (馬援傳). It is living Chinese heritage, given here with per-character pinyin and its source so you can trust the line, not a phrase invented in English.
How do you pronounce 畫虎類犬?
In Mandarin it is huà hǔ lèi quǎn. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 畫虎類犬 aloud in Mandarin.