拈花惹草
niān huā rě cǎo
Pinyin

Definition

拈花惹草
 - 
niān huā rě cǎo
  1. lit. to pick the flowers and trample the grass (idiom)
  2. fig. to womanize
  3. to frequent brothels
  4. to sow one's wild oats

Character Decomposition

Related Words (20)

惹
rě
  1. 1 to provoke
  2. 2 to irritate
  3. 3 to vex
  4. 4 to stir up
  5. 5 to anger
  6. 6 to attract (troubles)
  7. 7 to cause (problems)
桃花
táo huā
  1. 1 peach blossom
  2. 2 (fig.) love affair
桃花运
táo huā yùn
  1. 1 luck with the ladies
  2. 2 a romance
  3. 3 good luck
烟花
yān huā
  1. 1 fireworks
  2. 2 prostitute (esp. in Yuan theater)
草
cǎo
  1. 1 variant of 草[cǎo]
花
Huā
  1. 1 surname Hua
花园
huā yuán
  1. 1 garden
  2. 2 CL:座[zuò],個|个[gè]
草根
cǎo gēn
  1. 1 grass roots (lit. and fig.)
草莓
cǎo méi
  1. 1 strawberry
  2. 2 CL:顆|颗[kē]
  3. 3 (Tw) hickey
  4. 4 love bite
雪花
xuě huā
  1. 1 snowflake
鲜花
xiān huā
  1. 1 flower
  2. 2 fresh flowers
  3. 3 CL:朵[duǒ]
三叶草
sān yè cǎo
  1. 1 clover
  2. 2 trefoil
五花八门
wǔ huā bā mén
  1. 1 myriad
  2. 2 all kinds of
  3. 3 all sorts of
五花肉
wǔ huā ròu
  1. 1 pork belly
  2. 2 streaky pork
仙草
xiān cǎo
  1. 1 medicinal herb (genus Mesona)
  2. 2 grass jelly
冰花
bīng huā
  1. 1 ice crystal
  2. 2 frost (on windows)
印花
yìn huā
  1. 1 tax stamp
大丽花
dà lì huā
  1. 1 dahlia (loanword)
天花板
tiān huā bǎn
  1. 1 ceiling
好惹
hǎo rě
  1. 1 accommodating
  2. 2 easy to push around

Idioms (20)

人生一世，草木一春
rén shēng yī shì , cǎo mù yī chūn
  1. 1 Man has but one life, grass but one spring (idiom). fig. the brevity of human existence
借花献佛
jiè huā xiàn Fó
  1. 1 lit. presenting the Buddha with borrowed flowers (idiom); fig. to win favor or influence using sb else's property
  2. 2 plagiarism
兔子不吃窝边草
tù zi bù chī wō biān cǎo
  1. 1 A rabbit doesn't eat the grass by its own burrow (idiom); One shouldn't do anything to harm one's neighbors.
兵马未动，粮草先行
bīng mǎ wèi dòng , liáng cǎo xiān xíng
  1. 1 before the troops move, fodder and provisions go first (idiom); logistics comes before military maneuvers
  2. 2 an army marches on its stomach
剪草除根
jiǎn cǎo chú gēn
  1. 1 lit. cut grass and pull out roots (idiom); fig. to destroy root and branch
  2. 2 to eradicate
又要马儿跑，又要马儿不吃草
yòu yào mǎ r5 pǎo , yòu yào mǎ r5 bù chī cǎo
  1. 1 lit. you can't expect the horse to run fast but not let it graze (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. you can't have your cake and eat it, too
名花有主
míng huā yǒu zhǔ
  1. 1 the girl is already taken (idiom)
天涯何处无芳草
tiān yá hé chù wú fāng cǎo
  1. 1 there are plenty more fish in the sea (idiom)
天花乱坠
tiān huā luàn zhuì
  1. 1 lit. a deluge of heavenly flowers (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. extravagant embellishments
  3. 3 hype
奇花异卉
qí huā yì huì
  1. 1 exotic flowers and rare herbs (idiom)
奇花异草
qí huā yì cǎo
  1. 1 very rarely seen, unusual (idiom)
好马不吃回头草
hǎo mǎ bù chī huí tóu cǎo
  1. 1 lit. a good horse doesn't turn around and graze the same patch again (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. once you've moved on, don't go back again (romantic relationship, job etc)
  3. 3 leave the past behind
如花似玉
rú huā sì yù
  1. 1 delicate as a flower, refined as a precious jade (idiom)
  2. 2 (of a woman) exquisite
寸草不生
cùn cǎo bù shēng
  1. 1 lit. not even a blade of grass grows (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. barren
寻花问柳
xún huā wèn liǔ
  1. 1 lit. to enjoy the beautiful spring scenery (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. to frequent brothels
  3. 3 to sow one's wild oats
心花怒放
xīn huā nù fàng
  1. 1 to burst with joy (idiom)
  2. 2 to be over the moon
  3. 3 to be elated
惹火烧身
rě huǒ shāo shēn
  1. 1 stir up the fire and you get burnt (idiom); to get one's fingers burnt
  2. 2 fig. to suffer on account of one's own meddling
手到拈来
shǒu dào niān lái
  1. 1 lit. to stretch a hand and grab it (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. easy to do
打草惊蛇
dǎ cǎo jīng shé
  1. 1 lit. beat the grass to scare the snake (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. to inadvertently alert an enemy
  3. 3 to punish sb as a warning to others
拈花惹草
niān huā rě cǎo
  1. 1 lit. to pick the flowers and trample the grass (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. to womanize
  3. 3 to frequent brothels
  4. 4 to sow one's wild oats

Sample Sentences

别气急败坏亲爱的，我当然也不希望我们家老王在外面拈花惹草的，可歇斯底里解决不了问题，得冷静分析，所谓，知己知彼、百战不殆嘛。
bié qìjíbàihuài qīn ài de ，wǒ dāngrán yě bù xīwàng wǒmen jiā Lǎo Wáng zài wàimian niǎnhuārěcǎo de ，kě xiēsīdǐlǐ jiějuébùliǎo wèntí ，děi lěngjìng fēnxī ，suǒwèi ，zhījǐzhībǐ 、bǎizhànbùdài ma 。
Don't get yourself into such a state, dear. Of course I don't want my hubby to sow wild oats, but getting hysterical about things isn't going to resolve the issue. You have to do a cool analysis, like that quote from the Art of War: "If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles."
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