百足之虫死而不僵 in English bai3 zu2 zhi1 chong2 si3 er2 bu4 jiang1 Meaning

Meanings

  • a centipede dies but never falls down
  • old institutions die hard

Simplified Characters

百 足 之 虫 死 而 不 僵

Traditional Characters

百 足 之 蟲 死 而 不 僵

Pinyin

bai3 zu2 zhi1 chong2 si3 er2 bu4 jiang1

Literal

Literal explanation, with pronunciation and meaning of each character.

百bai3surname Bai 足zu2excessive 之zhi1(possessive particle, literary equivalent of 的[de5]) 虫chong2lower form of animal life, including insects, insect larvae, worms and similar creatures 死si3to die 而er2and 不bu4(negative prefix) 僵jiang1rigid