贪得无厌 tān dé wú yàn insatiable

Explanation

形容一个人贪心，永远不知足。

Describes a person who is greedy and never satisfied.

Origin Story

春秋战国时期，晋国有六位强大的卿大夫，他们为了争夺权力和土地，不断地互相攻击，最终导致了晋国的衰败。其中智伯是最为贪婪的一位，他为了扩大自己的势力，想吞并赵襄子，于是就率领军队包围了赵襄子的都城晋阳。赵襄子被困，无力抵抗，便向韩康子和魏桓子求援。韩康子和魏桓子虽然也害怕智伯的强大，但他们更怕智伯会继续扩张，所以就联合起来出兵攻击智伯。最终，智伯被韩康子和魏桓子所杀，他的势力也随之崩溃。这个故事告诉我们，贪得无厌，最终只会害人害己，得不偿失。

chūn qiū zhàn guó shí qī, jìn guó yǒu liù wèi qiáng dà de qīng dài fū, tā men wèi le zhēng duó quán lì hé tǔ dì, bù duàn de hù xiāng gōng jī, zuì zhōng dǎo zhì le jìn guó de shuāi bài. qí zhōng zhì bó shì zuì wéi tān lán de yī wèi, tā wèi le kuò dà zì jǐ de shì lì, xiǎng tūn bìng zhào xiāng zǐ, yú shì jiù shuài lǐng jūn duì bào wéi le zhào xiāng zǐ de dū chéng jìn yáng. zhào xiāng zǐ bèi kùn, wú lì dǐ kàng, biàn xiàng hán kāng zǐ hé wèi huán zǐ qiú yuán. hán kāng zǐ hé wèi huán zǐ suī rán yě hǎi pà zhì bó de qiáng dà, dàn tā men gèng pà zhì bó huì jì xù kuò zhāng, suǒ yǐ jiù lián hé qǐ chu bīng gōng jī zhì bó. zuì zhōng, zhì bó bèi hán kāng zǐ hé wèi huán zǐ suǒ shā, tā de shì lì yě zhī suī pò kuì. zhè ge gù shì gàosu wǒ men, tān dé wú yàn, zuì zhōng zhǐ huì hài rén hài jǐ, dé bù cháng shī.

During the Warring States Period in ancient China, there were six powerful feudal lords in the Kingdom of Jin. They fought against each other for power and land, eventually leading to the decline of the Kingdom of Jin. Among them, Zhi Bo was the most greedy one. He wanted to expand his power and wanted to annex Zhao Xiangzi. So he led his army to besiege Zhao Xiangzi's capital, Jinyang. Zhao Xiangzi was trapped and unable to defend himself, so he asked Han Kangzi and Wei Huanzi for help. Han Kangzi and Wei Huanzi were also afraid of Zhi Bo's strength, but they were even more afraid that Zhi Bo would continue to expand. So they joined forces to attack Zhi Bo. In the end, Zhi Bo was killed by Han Kangzi and Wei Huanzi, and his power collapsed. This story tells us that greed and insatiable desire will ultimately lead to harm and loss.

Usage

这个成语常用来形容那些贪得无厌的人，也用来比喻对任何事物都过度追求，最终可能适得其反。

zhè ge chéng yǔ cháng yòng lái xíng róng nà xiē tān dé wú yàn de rén, yě yòng lái bǐ yù duì rènhé shì wù dōu guò dù zhuī qiú, zuì zhōng kě néng shì dé qí fǎn.

This idiom is often used to describe those who are greedy and insatiable, and it is also used to describe the excessive pursuit of anything, which may ultimately be counterproductive.

Examples

• 他贪得无厌，总是想占便宜。

  tā tān dé wú yàn, zǒng shì xiǎng zhàn pián yì.

  He is insatiable and always wants to take advantage.

• 这个贪得无厌的商人，最终被自己的贪婪所害。

  zhè ge tān dé wú yàn de shāng rén, zuì zhōng bèi zì jǐ de tān lán suǒ hài

  This greedy businessman was eventually ruined by his greed.

Related Idioms

• 贪婪

• 贪心

• 得寸进尺

Opposite Idioms

• 知足常乐

• 克己奉公