三缄其口 sān jiān qí kǒu to keep one's mouth shut

Explanation

三缄其口的意思是在嘴巴上封了三道封条，形容说话非常谨慎，小心。现在人们常用三缄其口来形容在某些场合，为了避免不必要的麻烦，而选择沉默不语。

The idiom "san jian qi kou" means to seal one's mouth with three seals, describing someone who is extremely cautious in their speech. Nowadays, people often use "san jian qi kou" to describe someone who chooses to remain silent in certain situations to avoid unnecessary trouble.

Origin Story

春秋时期，孔子周游列国，来到周朝的首都洛邑，他去参观周王的祖庙，也就是太庙。太庙是祭祀祖先的地方，是神圣不可侵犯的，所以参观者必须保持安静，不许大声喧哗。孔子在参观太庙的时候，看到右边的台阶前立着一尊金人，金人嘴巴上贴着三张封条，金人背上还刻着字：“古之慎言人也，戒之哉，戒之哉！无多言，多言多败。”意思就是说，古代那些说话谨慎的人，要懂得说话的艺术，要谨言慎行，不要说太多的话，因为说多了容易犯错误，容易给自己带来麻烦。孔子看到这尊金人，便警醒自己，要谨慎说话，不要乱说话，要说话就说有益的话。这个故事告诉我们，说话要谨慎，要考虑后果，要避免不必要的麻烦。

chūn qiū shí qī, kǒng zǐ zhōu yóu liè guó, lái dào zhōu cháo de shǒu dū luò yì, tā qù cān guān zhōu wáng de zǔ miào, jiù shì tài miào. tài miào shì jì sì zǔ xiān de dì fāng, shì shén shèng bù kě qīn fàn de, suǒ yǐ cān guān zhě bì xū bǎo chí ānjìng, bù xǔ dà shēng xuān huá. kǒng zǐ zài cān guān tài miào de shí hòu, kàn dào yòu biān de tái jiē qián lì zhe yī zūn jīn rén, jīn rén zuǐ bā shàng tiē zhe sān zhāng fēng tiáo, jīn rén bèi shàng hái kè zhe zì:“gǔ zhī shèn yán rén yě, jiè zhī zāi, jiè zhī zāi! wú duō yán, duō yán duō bài.” yì sī jiù shì shuō, gǔ dài nà xiē shuō huà jǐn shèn de rén, yào dǒng de shuō huà de yì shù, yào jǐn yán shèn xíng, bù yào shuō tài duō de huà, yīn wèi shuō duō le róng yì fàn cuò wù, róng yì gěi zì jǐ dài lái má fán. kǒng zǐ kàn dào zhè zūn jīn rén, biàn jǐng xǐng zì jǐ, yào jǐn shèn shuō huà, bù yào luàn shuō huà, yào shuō huà jiù shuō yǒu yì de huà. zhè ge gù shì gào sù wǒ men, shuō huà yào jǐn shèn, yào kǎo lǜ hòu guǒ, yào bì miǎn bù bì yào de má fán.

During the Spring and Autumn Period, Confucius traveled around the states and came to Luoyi, the capital of the Zhou dynasty. He went to visit the ancestral temple of the King of Zhou, the Taimiao. The Taimiao was a place where ancestors were worshiped and was sacred and inviolable. Therefore, visitors had to maintain silence and were not allowed to make noise. While visiting the Taimiao, Confucius saw a golden man standing in front of the right staircase. The golden man had three seals on his mouth and there were words engraved on his back: "The people of antiquity who carefully chose their words, let yourselves be warned, let yourselves be warned! Do not talk too much, because too much talk leads to many mistakes." This means that the people of antiquity who were careful with their words understood the art of speaking and paid attention to carefully choosing their words. They did not talk too much because too much talk could easily lead to mistakes and cause them trouble. Confucius saw this golden man and admonished himself to speak cautiously, not to talk randomly, but only to say beneficial things. This story teaches us that we should be cautious when speaking, consider the consequences, and avoid unnecessary trouble.

Usage

三缄其口，形容说话谨慎，小心，现在也用来形容不肯或不敢开口。在日常生活中，我们经常会用到三缄其口这个成语。比如，在面对一些敏感话题的时候，为了避免不必要的麻烦，我们可以选择三缄其口。又比如，在一些需要保密的时候，我们也要三缄其口，以免泄露机密。

sān jiān qí kǒu, xíng róng shuō huà jǐn shèn, xiǎo xīn, xiàn zài yě yòng lái xíng róng bù kěn huò bù gǎn kāi kǒu. zài rì cháng shēng huó zhōng, wǒ men jīng cháng huì yòng dào sān jiān qí kǒu zhè ge chéng yǔ. bǐ rú, zài miàn duì yī xiē mǐn gǎn huà tí de shí hòu, wèi le bì miǎn bù bì yào de má fán, wǒ men kě yǐ xuǎn zé sān jiān qí kǒu. yòu bǐ rú, zài yī xiē xū yào bǎo mì de shí hòu, wǒ men yě yào sān jiān qí kǒu, yǐ miǎn xiè lù jī mì.

San jian qi kou, describes someone who is cautious and careful in their speech. Now it is also used to describe someone who is unwilling or dare not speak. In daily life, we often use the idiom san jian qi kou. For example, when facing some sensitive topics, in order to avoid unnecessary trouble, we can choose to keep our mouths shut. For example, when some things need to be kept secret, we also need to keep our mouths shut to avoid disclosing secrets.

Examples

• 面对着如此重大的问题，我们应当三缄其口，谨慎地进行分析，避免错误判断。

  miàn duì zhe rú cǐ zhòng dà de wèn tí, wǒ men yīng gāi sān jiān qí kǒu, jǐn shèn de jìn xíng fēn xī, bì miǎn cuò wù pàn duàn.

  We should keep our mouths shut in the face of such a major problem, carefully analyze and avoid misjudgment.

• 在利益面前，他三缄其口，不愿透露任何信息。

  zài lì yì miàn qián, tā sān jiān qí kǒu, bù yuàn tòu lù rè hé xìn xī.

  In the face of profit, he kept his mouth shut and was unwilling to disclose any information.

• 面对着如此重大的问题，我们应当三缄其口，谨慎地进行分析，避免错误判断。

  miàn duì zhe rú cǐ zhòng dà de wèn tí, wǒ men yīng gāi sān jiān qí kǒu, jǐn shèn de jìn xíng fēn xī, bì miǎn cuò wù pàn duàn.

  We should keep our mouths shut in the face of such a major problem, carefully analyze and avoid misjudgment.

Related Idioms

• 沉默寡言

• 谨言慎行

• 闭口不言

• 守口如瓶

Opposite Idioms

• 滔滔不绝

• 口无遮拦

• 侃侃而谈