如鲠在喉

如鯁在喉

rúgěngzàihóu

idiom

Meanings

Zhè jiàn shì ràng wǒ rú gěng zài hóu, bù shuō bù kuài.

This matter sits in my throat like a bone — I can't rest until I say it.

Tā xīn lǐ yǒu huà rú gěng zài hóu, zhōngyú kāikǒu le.

The words were stuck in his throat; at last he spoke.

history

From Xu Shen's 《说文解字》: 鲠 is "a bone caught in the throat" — later glossed as "loyal remonstrance felt like a fish bone: impossible to hold back".

memory

鲠 (gěng) has 鱼 (fish) on the left — literally the fish bone lodged in your throat.

如 rú

鲠 gěng

在 zài

喉 hóu