出头的椽子先烂

Traditional: 出頭的椽子先爛

chū tóu de chuán zi xiān làn

Dictionary entry

lit. rafters that jut out rot first (idiom)

What does 出头的椽子先烂 mean?

出头的椽子先烂 (chū tóu de chuán zi xiān làn) has the following dictionary meaning.

1lit. rafters that jut out rot first (idiom)

2fig. anyone who makes himself conspicuous will be targeted for attack

Character breakdown

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出chūto go out; to come out · to arise; to occur 头tóuhead · hair style 的deof; ~'s (possessive particle) · (used after an attribute when it modifies a noun)椽chuánbeam · rafter 子zǐson · child 先xiānbeforehand; first; earlier · at first; originally 烂lànsoft; mushy · well-cooked and soft

Reviewed examples

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How to pronounce 出头的椽子先烂

出头的椽子先烂

chū tóu de chuán zi xiān làn

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Base dictionary data: CC-CEDICT · CC BY-SA 4.0.