窮得只剩下錢

Chinese

		exhausted; poor	get; obtain; gain get; obtain; gain; proper; suitable; proud; contented; allow; permit; ready; finished; a sentence particle used after a verb to show effect; degree or possibility; to have to; must; ought to; to need to	only; merely; just only; merely; just; but	to be left over; to remain	coin; money
trad. (窮得只剩下錢)		窮	得	只	剩下	錢
simp. (穷得只剩下钱)		穷	得	只	剩下	钱
alternative forms		窮得衹剩下錢／穷得只剩下钱
Literally: “so poor that only money is left”.

Etymology

From the title of a book written by Taiwanese priest Wang Yang-ming (王陽明), which was once brought by Chen Chih-chung to his father in prison, Chen Shui-bian.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): qióng de zhǐ shèngxià qián

  (Zhuyin): ㄑㄩㄥˊ ˙ㄉㄜ ㄓˇ ㄕㄥˋ ㄒㄧㄚˋ ㄑㄧㄢˊ

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: qióng de zhǐ shèngxià qián
    • Zhuyin: ㄑㄩㄥˊ ˙ㄉㄜ ㄓˇ ㄕㄥˋ ㄒㄧㄚˋ ㄑㄧㄢˊ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: cyóng de̊ jhǐh shèngsià cián
    • Wade–Giles: chʻiung² tê⁵ chih³ shêng⁴-hsia⁴ chʻien²
    • Yale: chyúng de jř shèng-syà chyán
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: chyong .de jyy shenqshiah chyan
    • Palladius: цюн дэ чжи шэнся цянь (cjun dɛ čži šɛnsja cjanʹ)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡ɕʰi̯ʊŋ³⁵ d̥ə³ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂɤŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ɕi̯ä⁵¹ t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn³⁵/

Idiom

窮得只剩下錢

1. (sarcastic) to care nothing but money; to be rich but full of emptiness in mind