諺語 · a single proverb
紙上談兵
Simplified: 纸上谈兵
What does 紙上談兵 (zhǐ shàng tán bīng) mean?
紙上談兵 (zhǐ shàng tán bīng) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "discuss warfare on paper." In use it means: Theoretical knowledge without practical experience is dangerous; armchair strategy fails in the field. 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 Horse.
Literally: "discuss warfare on paper."
The reading
The map is not the mountain. The person who has read every book on swimming will still drown if they have never been in the water. Theory is the skeleton. Practice is the muscle that makes it move.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Records of the Grand Historian 史記, Zhao Kuo 趙括 (Lian Po 廉頗藺相如列傳)
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 Wisdom & Learning, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Horse, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.
Questions
Is 紙上談兵 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 紙上談兵 (zhǐ shàng tán bīng) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from Records of the Grand Historian 史記, Zhao Kuo 趙括 (Lian Po 廉頗藺相如列傳). 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 紙上談兵?
In Mandarin it is zhǐ shàng tán bīng. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 紙上談兵 aloud in Mandarin.