溜须拍马 liū xū pāi mǎ flatter

Explanation

溜须拍马指为了讨好别人而说好话，奉承拍马屁。

To flatter means to say good words and flatter to please someone.

Origin Story

话说唐朝时期，有个叫李白的诗人，他虽然才华横溢，但是性格孤傲，不善于逢迎拍马。一次，他被邀请参加朝廷宴会，席间，许多官员都争先恐后地向皇帝献媚，溜须拍马，好不热闹。李白却独自坐在一旁，静静地喝酒，对那些阿谀奉承的场面不屑一顾。皇帝注意到了他，问他为何不说话。李白答道：“臣不善于言语，只会写诗。”皇帝看他并非刻意回避，反而对他的率真感到欣赏，因此并没有责怪他。后来，李白凭借自己的才华，在朝廷上也占有一席之地，深受皇帝的赏识。这个故事告诉我们，真才实学比溜须拍马更重要，踏实做事才能获得真正的成功。

huà shuō táng cháo shíqī, yǒu gè jiào lǐ bái de shīrén, tā suīrán cáihuá héngyì, dànshì xìnggé gū ào, bù shàn yú féngyíng pāi mǎ. yī cì, tā bèi yāoqǐng cānjiā cháoting yànhuì, xí jiān, xǔduō guān yuán dōu zhēng xiān kǒuhòu de xiàng huángdì xiàn mèi, liū xū pāi mǎ, hǎo bù rènao. lǐ bái què dúzì zuò zài yī páng, jìngjìng de hē jiǔ, duì nàxiē āyú fèngchéng de chǎngmiàn bù xiè yīgù. huángdì zhùyì dàole tā, wèn tā wèihé bù shuō huà. lǐ bái dá dào: “chén bù shàn yú yányǔ, zhǐ huì xiě shī.” huángdì kàn tā bìngfēi kèyì huíbì, fǎn'ér duì tā de shuài zhēn gǎndào xīnshǎng, yīncǐ bìng méiyǒu zéguài tā. hòulái, lǐ bái píngjì zìjǐ de cáihuá, zài cháoting shàng yě zhàn yǒu yī xí zhīdì, shēn shòu huángdì de shǎngshí. zhège gùshì gàosù wǒmen, zhēn cái shíxué bǐ liū xū pāi mǎ gèng zhòngyào, tàshi zuòshì cáinéng huòdé zhēnzhèng de chénggōng.

It is said that during the Tang Dynasty, there was a poet named Li Bai, who, although very talented, had a proud character and was not good at flattering. Once, he was invited to a court banquet. Many officials vied with each other to flatter the emperor. Li Bai, however, sat alone on the side, quietly drinking wine and disdaining the scene of flattery. The emperor noticed him and asked him why he wasn't speaking. Li Bai replied, "I'm not good at speaking, I can only write poetry." The emperor saw that he wasn't deliberately avoiding it, but rather appreciated his sincerity, so he didn't blame him. Later, Li Bai, thanks to his talent, also occupied a place in the court and was highly valued by the emperor. This story tells us that true ability is more important than flattery, and that hard work leads to true success.

Usage

用作谓语、宾语；比喻为了讨好别人而说好话、奉承拍马屁。

yòng zuò wèiyǔ, bǐnyǔ; bǐ yù wèile tǎohǎo biérén ér shuō hǎo huà, fèngchéng pāi mǎpì

Used as predicate and object; to say good words and flatter to please someone.

Examples

• 他总是溜须拍马，想得到上司的赏识。

  tā zǒngshì liū xū pāi mǎ, xiǎng dé dào shàngsī de shǎngshí

  He always flatters to gain the favor of his superiors.

• 那些溜须拍马的小人，最终都不会有好下场。

  nàxiē liū xū pāi mǎ de xiǎorén, zuìzhōng dōu bù huì yǒu hǎo xiàchǎng

  Those sycophants will not end well in the end..

Related Idioms

• 阿谀奉承

• 拍马屁

Opposite Idioms

• 正直

• 忠诚