S5E05 | Mr. Know-it-all
Saying: “The frog at the bottom of the well”
Pinyin: Jǐng Dǐ Zhī Wā
Chinese: 井底之蛙
Another staple from the "Greatest Chengyu of All-time" Box Set. The Frog at the Bottom of the Well, 井底之蛙 Jǐng Dǐ Zhī Wā. This one has a multitude of uses and comes to us straight from The Zhuangzi. This story concerns a small frog living happily at the bottom of a well. He lived a happy and contented life but remained oblivious to what was going on outside the small space he resided in. He thought he knew everything till Mr. Sea Turtle came along.
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Terms in Episode
| Pinyin/Term | Chinese | English/Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| chéngyǔ | 成语 | A Chinese saying or idiom |
| Jǐng Dǐ Zhī Wā | 井底之蛙 | A frog at the bottom of a well |
| Jǐng | 井 | A well |
| Dǐ | 底 | At the bottom |
| Zhī | 之 | particle used between an attribute and the word it modifies |
| Wā | 蛙 | Frog |
| Zhuāngzǐ | 庄子 | A major figure in Daoism, Zhuangzi was his name and the title of the work that he wrote (part of) |
| Qiūshǔi | 秋水 | The chapter from the book "The Zhuangzi" from which this Chinese saying is derived |
| Dōng Hǎi | 东海 | The East Ocean (that ocean that is east of China),a.k.a. The Pacific Ocean |
| Dà Yǔ | 大禹 | Yu the Great, founder of the mythical Xia Dynasty |
| Xià Dynasty | 夏朝 | China's first dynasty, though no solid proof attests to this. The Xia lasted from approximately 2070-1600 BC |
| King Tāng of the Shāng | 商汤 | Founder of the Shang Dynasty who lived around 1646 BC |
| Zhōu dynasty | 周朝 | The Zhou Dynasty that ran 1046 to 256 BCE, the last of China's Three Bronze Age dynasties |
