明 珠 暗 投

míng zhū àn tóudictionary entry

to cast pearls before swine (idiom) / not to get proper recognition for one's talents

Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-6f482c27e39fabf5. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

明珠暗投 明珠暗投 [ming2 zhu1 an4 tou2] /to cast pearls before swine (idiom)/not to get proper recognition for one's talents/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

明
míng
bright / opposite: dark 暗[àn] / (of meaning) clear / to understand / next / public or open / wise / generic term for a sacrifice to the gods
Míng
Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) / surname Ming / Ming (c. 2000 BC), fourth of the legendary Flame Emperors, 炎帝[Yán dì] descended from Shennong 神農|神农[Shén nóng] Farmer God
珠
zhū
bead / pearl / CL:粒[lì],顆|颗[kē]
暗
àn
dark / to turn dark / secret / hidden / (literary) confused / ignorant / (literary) to close (a door) / to eclipse / confused / ignorant (variant of 暗[àn]) / dark (variant of 暗[àn])
投
tóu
to throw (sth in a specific direction: ball, javelin, grenade etc) / to cast (a ballot) / to cast (a glance, a shadow etc) / to put in (money for investment, a coin to operate a slot machine) / to send (a letter, a manuscript etc) / to throw oneself into (a river, a well etc to commit suicide) / to go to / to seek refuge / to place oneself into the hands of / (coll.) to rinse (clothes) in water

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.