焚书坑儒

焚書坑儒

fénshū-kēngrú

idiom

Meanings

1 the burning of books and burying of scholars under Qin Shi Huang (213–212 BCE)
2 to persecute intellectuals

Characters

Confucian scholar

Examples

HSK 7-9

秦始皇焚书坑儒，很多古书从此失传。

Qínshǐhuáng fénshū-kēngrú, hěnduō gǔshū cóngcǐ shīchuán.

Qin Shi Huang burned books and buried scholars alive, and many ancient texts were lost for good.

HSK 7-9

历史学家常把严厉的思想审查比作焚书坑儒。

Lìshǐxuéjiā cháng bǎ yánlì de sīxiǎng shěnchá bǐzuò fénshū-kēngrú.

Historians often compare harsh censorship of ideas to the burning of books and burying of scholars.

Tips

history

In 213 BCE, on the advice of the chancellor 李斯, the First Emperor had the histories of the other states, the Book of Songs, the Book of Documents and the works of the philosophers burned, sparing books on medicine, divination and farming. The next year more than 460 scholars and occult masters who had criticized him were buried alive at 咸阳.

Stroke Order

焚 fén

书 shū

坑 kēng

儒 rú