CHENGYU
庖丁解牛(páo dīng jiě niú)meaning, story and origin
- Register:
- literary, approving
- Source:
- 《庄子·养生主》
MEANING
- Literal
- Cook Ding carves the ox
- Figurative meaning
- to work with effortless mastery born of deep practice
ORIGIN STORY
In the Zhuangzi, Cook Ding carved an ox so smoothly that his knife never dulled. Asked his secret, he said he no longer saw the whole ox but the natural seams within it — after years of practice, his skill followed the Way.
NATURAL EQUIVALENT
“second nature”
EXAMPLES
老师傅修机器像庖丁解牛一样熟练。Lǎo shīfu xiū jīqì xiàng páo dīng jiě niú yíyàng shúliàn.HSK6
The old craftsman fixes machines with the effortless mastery of Cook Ding carving the ox.
练习了十年，他解这道题就像庖丁解牛。Liànxí le shí nián, tā jiě zhè dào tí jiù xiàng páo dīng jiě niú.HSK6
After ten years of practice, he solves this problem the way Cook Ding carved oxen.
COMMON MISTAKE
Watch out: Note the reading: 庖 is páo. It praises mastery through practice, not brute force.
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TRUST & SOURCES
- Reviewed by
- AI-assisted editorial review
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-15
- CC-CEDICT 2026-01-01