故纸堆

故紙堆

gùzhǐduī

idiom

Measure Word

一堆故纸 duī

Meanings

1 pile of old papers
2 heap of musty old books
3 the stuffy world of dead texts, with a derogatory tinge

Characters

Examples

别整天埋在故纸堆里，出去看看外面的世界。

Bié zhěngtiān mái zài gùzhǐduī lǐ, chūqù kànkan wàimiàn de shìjiè.

Stop burying yourself in dusty old books all day — go see the world.

她从故纸堆中翻出了一份明代的契约。

Tā cóng gùzhǐduī zhōng fān chūle yí fèn Míngdài de qìyuē.

She dug up a Ming-dynasty contract from the heap of old papers.

搞学术不能只钻故纸堆，还要关注现实。

Gǎo xuéshù bù néng zhǐ zuān gùzhǐduī, hái yào guānzhù xiànshí.

Scholarship can't live in the archives alone — you have to engage with reality.

Tips

usage

Often carries a mildly derogatory tone: the image is a pedant who reads old books but can't function in real life. 《五灯会元》: 百年钻故纸，何日出头时 — 'a hundred years drilling into old papers, when will you ever get out?'

Stroke Order

故 gù

纸 zhǐ

堆 duī