拋磚引玉

See also: 抛砖引玉

Chinese

	to throw; to toss; to fling to throw; to toss; to fling; to cast; to abandon	brick	to lead; to divert (water); to guide	jade
trad. (拋磚引玉)	拋	磚	引	玉
simp. (抛砖引玉)	抛	砖	引	玉
Literally: “to toss a brick to attract the jade”.

Etymology

One of the Thirty-Six Strategems, originally in reference to tossing brickbats at one's enemy to get an (exploitable) reaction or win a greater prize.

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Pinyin): pāozhuānyǐnyù

(Zhuyin): ㄆㄠㄓㄨㄢㄧㄣˇ ㄩˋ
Cantonese (Jyutping): paau¹ zyun¹ jan⁵ juk⁶
Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): phau-choan-ín-gio̍k / pha-chng-ín-ge̍k

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: pāozhuānyǐnyù
  - Zhuyin: ㄆㄠㄓㄨㄢㄧㄣˇ ㄩˋ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: paojhuanyǐnyù
  - Wade–Giles: pʻao¹-chuan¹-yin³-yü⁴
  - Yale: pāu-jwān-yǐn-yù
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: paujuanyiinyuh
  - Palladius: паочжуаньиньюй (paočžuanʹinʹjuj)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /pʰɑʊ̯⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂu̯än⁵⁵ in²¹⁴⁻²¹ y⁵¹/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
  - Jyutping: paau¹ zyun¹ jan⁵ juk⁶
  - Yale: pāau jyūn yáhn yuhk
  - Cantonese Pinyin: paau¹ dzyn¹ jan⁵ juk⁹
  - Guangdong Romanization: pao¹ jun¹ yen⁵ yug⁶
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /pʰaːu̯⁵⁵ t͡syːn⁵⁵ jɐn¹³ jʊk̚²/
Southern Min
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: phau-choan-ín-gio̍k
  - Tâi-lô: phau-tsuan-ín-gio̍k
  - Phofsit Daibuun: phauzoan'yn'giok
  - IPA (Xiamen): /pʰau⁴⁴⁻²² t͡suan⁴⁴⁻²² in⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ɡiɔk̚⁴/
  - IPA (Taipei): /pʰau⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡suan⁴⁴⁻³³ in⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ɡiɔk̚⁴/
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /pʰau⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡suan⁴⁴⁻³³ in⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ ɡiɔk̚⁴/
- (Hokkien: General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: pha-chng-ín-ge̍k
  - Tâi-lô: pha-tsng-ín-gi̍k
  - Phofsit Daibuun: phazng'yn'gek
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /pʰa⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sŋ̍⁴⁴⁻³³ in⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ ɡiɪk̚⁴/
  - IPA (Taipei): /pʰa⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sŋ̍⁴⁴⁻³³ in⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ɡiɪk̚⁴/

Note:

phau-choan-ín-gio̍k - literary;
pha-chng-ín-ge̍k - vernacular.

Idiom

拋磚引玉

(self-deprecatory) to offer one's own relatively worthless words, opinions, or services in order to attract others' more valuable contributions
20多年前，曾琦是第一個到廈門投資的港商，當時他想的就是當一個「拋磚引玉的人」，讓更多的港、澳、台、僑商回國投資。 [MSC, trad.]
20多年前，曾琦是第一个到厦门投资的港商，当时他想的就是当一个「抛砖引玉的人」，让更多的港、澳、台、侨商回国投资。 [MSC, simp.]
20 duō nián qián, Zēng Qí shì dì yī ge dào Xiàmén tóuzī de gǎngshāng, dāngshí tā xiǎng de jiùshì dāng yī ge “pāozhuān yǐnyù de rén”, ràng gèng duō de Gǎng, Ào, Tái, qiáoshāng huíguó tóuzī. [Pinyin]
More than 20 years ago, Zeng Qi was the first Hong Kong businessman to go to Xiamen to invest. At the time, he thought of himself as a a plain rock that attracts jade, making it possible for even more businessmen from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and overseas to return to the motherland to invest.
(original meaning, rare) to achieve success by goading one's opponent