目無全牛

Chinese

		eye; item; section eye; item; section; list; catalogue; table of contents; (taxonomy) order; goal; name; title	not have	all; whole; entire all; whole; entire; every; complete	ox; cow; bull
trad. (目無全牛)		目	無	全	牛
simp. (目无全牛)		目	无	全	牛
Literally: “there are no whole cows in sight”.

Etymology

From Zhuangzi, chapter 3 (《莊子·養生主》):

始臣之解牛之時，所見無非全牛者。三年之後，未嘗見全牛也。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]

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始臣之解牛之时，所见无非全牛者。三年之后，未尝见全牛也。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

From: Zhuangzi, circa 3^rd – 2^nd centuries BCE, translation from The Complete Works Of Chuang Tzu (2013), by Burton Watson

Shǐ chén zhī jiě niú zhī shí, suǒjiàn wú fēi quán niú zhě. Sān nián zhīhòu, wèicháng jiàn quán niú yě. [Pinyin]

When I first began cutting up oxen, all I could see was the ox itself. After three years I no longer saw the whole ox.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): mùwúquánniú

  (Zhuyin): ㄇㄨˋ ㄨˊ ㄑㄩㄢˊ ㄋㄧㄡˊ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): muk⁶ mou⁴ cyun⁴ ngau⁴

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: mùwúquánniú
    • Zhuyin: ㄇㄨˋ ㄨˊ ㄑㄩㄢˊ ㄋㄧㄡˊ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: mùwúcyuánnióu
    • Wade–Giles: mu⁴-wu²-chʻüan²-niu²
    • Yale: mù-wú-chywán-nyóu
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: muhwuchyuanniou
    • Palladius: мууцюаньню (muucjuanʹnju)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mu⁵¹ u³⁵ t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn³⁵ ni̯oʊ̯³⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: muk⁶ mou⁴ cyun⁴ ngau⁴
    • Yale: muhk mòuh chyùhn ngàuh
    • Cantonese Pinyin: muk⁹ mou⁴ tsyn⁴ ngau⁴
    • Guangdong Romanization: mug⁶ mou⁴ qun⁴ ngeo⁴
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mʊk̚² mou̯²¹ t͡sʰyːn²¹ ŋɐu̯²¹/

Idiom

目無全牛

1. supremely skilled