老牛舐犊 in English lao3 niu2 shi4 du2 Meaning

Meanings

• literally (word for word) an old ox licking its calf (idiomatic expression)
• metaphorically (of parents) to dote on one's children

Pinyin

lao3 niu2 shi4 du2

Literal

Literal explanation, with pronunciation and meaning of each character.

老lao3prefix used before the surname of a person or a numeral indicating the order of birth of the children in a family or to indicate affection or familiarity 牛niu2surname Niu 舐shi4to lick 犊du2calf