掌上明珠

zhǎngshàngmíngzhū

idiom #31,914

Meanings

1 a pearl in the palm
2 a beloved child (esp. a daughter) treasured by the family

Characters

Examples

她是父母的掌上明珠。

Tā shì fùmǔ de zhǎngshàngmíngzhū.

She's the apple of her parents' eye.

这个小女孩是全家的掌上明珠。

Zhège xiǎo nǚhái shì quán jiā de zhǎngshàngmíngzhū.

This little girl is the treasure of the whole family.

他从小被当作掌上明珠宠爱着长大。

Tā cóngxiǎo bèi dàngzuò zhǎngshàngmíngzhū chǒng'ài zhe zhǎng dà.

He grew up cherished like a pearl in the palm from childhood.

Tips

history

From Fu Xuan's Jin-dynasty poem 《短歌行》: '昔君视我，如掌中珠，何意一朝，弃我沟渠' — 'once you saw me as a pearl in the palm, yet one morning you cast me into the ditch.' The original was a lament of betrayed love; it later settled into the modern sense of a beloved daughter.

culture

Default reading is 'beloved daughter' — the classic image is a father holding up his baby girl. It can apply to sons or grandchildren too, but daughter is the prototype.

Stroke Order

掌 zhǎng

上 shàng

明 míng

珠 zhū