肝肠寸断

Pronunciation: gān cháng cùn duàn Literal meaning: Liver and intestines cut inch by inch

Origin & Usage

A New Account of Tales of the World records an army passing through the gorges, where a soldier took a gibbon's infant aboard. The mother followed along the bank for a hundred li, crying, until she leapt onto the boat and died there. They cut her open and found 肠皆寸寸断 — the intestines (肠) severed (断) into inch (寸) lengths. The commander heard of it and dismissed the man. The four-character form adds the liver (肝), which the story does not mention, because 肝肠 is the ordinary Chinese pairing for the seat of feeling. The phrase describes grief as an internal injury, and it is kept for the real thing — bereavement, not disappointment.

Examples

English: "The news of her departure left him heartbroken."

Chinese: 她的离去让他肝肠寸断。