CHENGYU
负荆请罪(fù jīng qǐng zuì)meaning, story and origin
- Register:
- literary
- Source:
- 《史记·廉颇蔺相如列传》
MEANING
- Literal
- to carry brambles and beg forgiveness
- Figurative meaning
- to offer a sincere, humble apology
ORIGIN STORY
General Lian Po despised the upstart minister Lin Xiangru, who avoided every quarrel for the sake of the state. Ashamed to learn this, Lian Po carried thorny branches on his bare back to Lin Xiangru's gate and begged for punishment.
NATURAL EQUIVALENT
“to eat humble pie”
EXAMPLES
他主动负荆请罪，大家也就原谅了他。Tā zhǔdòng fù jīng qǐng zuì, dàjiā yě jiù yuánliàng le tā.HSK6
He took the initiative to apologize sincerely, so everyone forgave him.
知道自己错了，就应该负荆请罪。Zhīdào zìjǐ cuò le, jiù yīnggāi fù jīng qǐng zuì.HSK6
If you know you were wrong, you should own up and ask forgiveness.
COMMON MISTAKE
Watch out: The apology is humbling and direct, often face-to-face — not a casual "sorry".
CHARACTER BREAKDOWN
Tap a character to explore it
TRUST & SOURCES
- Reviewed by
- AI-assisted editorial review
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-15
- CC-CEDICT 2026-01-01