諺語 · a single proverb
井底之蛙
What does 井底之蛙 (jǐng dǐ zhī wā) mean?
井底之蛙 (jǐng dǐ zhī wā) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "a frog at the bottom of a well." In use it means: Someone with an extremely narrow view of the world, who mistakes the small circle of sky above the well for the whole sky. Limited experience produces limited understanding. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Water note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Rat.
Literally: "a frog at the bottom of a well."
The reading
The frog is not stupid. The frog is accurate about the well. The circle of blue above is real, the walls are real, the water is real. Everything the frog says about its world is correct. The problem is that the frog thinks its world is the world. The cure is not argument. It is a ladder.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Zhuangzi 莊子, Autumn Floods 秋水篇
Sits beside
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 Rat, Year of the Ox, and Year of the Tiger.
Questions
Is 井底之蛙 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 井底之蛙 (jǐng dǐ zhī wā) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from Zhuangzi 莊子, Autumn Floods 秋水篇. 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 井底之蛙?
In Mandarin it is jǐng dǐ zhī wā. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 井底之蛙 aloud in Mandarin.