蓬頭垢面

Chinese

		(grass); disheveled	head; (noun suffix)	dirt; disgrace	face; side; surface face; side; surface; aspect; top
trad. (蓬頭垢面)		蓬	頭	垢	面
simp. (蓬头垢面)		蓬	头	垢	面

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): péngtóugòumiàn

  (Zhuyin): ㄆㄥˊ ㄊㄡˊ ㄍㄡˋ ㄇㄧㄢˋ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): pung⁴ tau⁴ gau³ min⁶

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: péngtóugòumiàn
    • Zhuyin: ㄆㄥˊ ㄊㄡˊ ㄍㄡˋ ㄇㄧㄢˋ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: péngtóugòumiàn
    • Wade–Giles: pʻêng²-tʻou²-kou⁴-mien⁴
    • Yale: péng-tóu-gòu-myàn
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: perngtourgowmiann
    • Palladius: пэнтоугоумянь (pɛntougoumjanʹ)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /pʰɤŋ³⁵ tʰoʊ̯³⁵ koʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ mi̯ɛn⁵¹/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: pung⁴ tau⁴ gau³ min⁶
    • Yale: pùhng tàuh gau mihn
    • Cantonese Pinyin: pung⁴ tau⁴ gau³ min⁶
    • Guangdong Romanization: pung⁴ teo⁴ geo³ min⁶
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /pʰʊŋ²¹ tʰɐu̯²¹ kɐu̯³³ miːn²²/

Idiom

蓬頭垢面

1. messy hair and dirty face

   • 後數年，恕念其女，以為蓬頭垢面，不可識也，令其男義方訪之。 [Literary Chinese, trad.]
     后数年，恕念其女，以为蓬头垢面，不可识也，令其男义方访之。 [Literary Chinese, simp.]

     From: Taiping Guangji (Extensive Records of the Taiping Era), 978 CE

     Hòu shù nián, Shù niàn qí nǚ, yǐwéi péngtóugòumiàn, bùkě shí yě, lìng qí nán Yìfāng fǎng zhī. [Pinyin]

     Before many years had passed, however, Wei Shu began to miss his daughter, painting in his mind's eye doleful pictures of her haggard and shabby looks. He doubted if he could even recognise her now, so he asked his eldest son Yifang to go and see.