金饭碗

金飯碗

jīnfànwǎn

idiom

Measure Word

一个金饭碗 gè

Meanings

1 a gold rice bowl (lit.)
2 a cushy, well-paid job
3 a secure, lucrative position

Characters

Examples

公务员过去被视为金饭碗。

Gōngwùyuán guòqù bèi shìwéi jīnfànwǎn.

Civil service jobs used to be seen as gold rice bowls.

他辞掉金饭碗去创业，家里人都反对。

Tā cídiào jīnfànwǎn qù chuàngyè, jiālǐrén dōu fǎnduì.

He quit a cushy job to start a business — his whole family was against it.

时代变了，再铁的金饭碗也未必安稳。

Shídài biàn le, zài tiě de jīnfànwǎn yě wèibì ānwěn.

Times have changed — even the most iron-clad gold rice bowl isn't guaranteed steady anymore.

Tips

culture

Part of a job-status ladder in modern Chinese: 铁饭碗 (iron bowl — stable job), 金饭碗 (gold bowl — stable and lucrative), 泥饭碗 (clay bowl — precarious job). The bowl stands for one's livelihood.

Stroke Order

金 jīn

饭 fàn

碗 wǎn