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

HSK 5

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.

HSK 7-9

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.

HSK 7-9

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