"Almost anyone who has studied basic Chinese will have encountered the popular idiom “马马虎虎” (Horse-Horse Tiger-Tiger). In Chinese, such idioms are called “成语 (chéng yǔ),” and each one has a story behind it, known as a “典故 (diǎn gù).”
As we finished working through “画龙点睛,” one of my students made a specific request for our next lesson — “The story of 马马虎虎.” So, I set out to find a version suitable for his language level.
After some research, I found this version that I’m sharing here — a simplified story of the origin of the Chinese idiom “马马虎虎.”
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《马马虎虎的故事》
从前，有一个喜欢画画的老爷爷，他特别擅长画马和老虎。有一天，小朋友们来找他，请他画一匹马和一只老虎。
老爷爷高兴地答应了，没多久，他用心地分别画了一匹马和一只老虎。小朋友们围过来看画，他们觉得这幅画很特别。
可是细看后，小朋友们发现，画中的马有点像老虎，而老虎又有点像马。于是他们笑着对老爷爷说：“老爷爷，您画得马马虎虎啊！”
老爷爷也笑了起来，没有生气。这个故事后来传开了，“马马虎虎”就成了形容做事不够认真、不够仔细的词语。
这个故事告诉我们，做事情要用心，否则就会“马马虎虎”哦！
Story breakdown by paragraph with vocabulary and audio
从前 = once upon a time
老爷爷 = an old man
特别 = especially, special
匹 = (measure word for horses)
擅长 = to be skilled at
答应 = to agree, accept a proposal
没多久 = not long after
用心地 = intentionally, carefully
分别 = to divide, separate (分别画了 = to paint separately)
围过来 = to gather around
幅 = (measure word for a painting, or scroll)
Let’s take a closer look.
The English translation shows the characters following English, arranged by meaning.
The old man 老爷爷 happily 高兴地 agreed 答应了, not long after 没多久, he 他 carefully 用心地 painted 画了a horse 一匹马 and 和 a tiger 一只老虎 separately 分别. The children 小朋友们 gathered around 围过来 to look at 看 the painting 画. They 他们 felt 觉得 this painting 这幅画 was very special 很特别.
发现 = to notice, realize
画中的马 = the horse in the painting
于是 = and then
马马虎虎 = vague, careless, so-so
生气 = to get angry
传开 = to be shared around, passed around
形容 = to describe
做事 = to do things, to work
不够认真 = to not be serious enough, not conscientious enough
仔细 = careful, detailed
词语 = a phrase, saying
Let’s take a closer look.
The English translation shows the characters following English, arranged by meaning.
The old man 老爷爷 also 也 began to laugh 笑了起来, he wasn’t angry 没有生气. This story 这个故事 later 后来 was shared around 传开了，”Horse-horse, tiger-tiger 马马虎虎” became 就成了 a phrase 词语 to describe 形容 doing things 做事 haphazardly 不够认真, not 不 careful 仔细 enough 够.
用心 = diligent, to be diligent
否则 = otherwise
哦 = （expresses stating a fact other’s may not be aware of)
Character Radical:
月 = This is the “moon” or “meat” radical, 月字旁 (yuè zì páng) or 肉字旁 (ròu zì páng).
Moon Radical:
月 (yuè) means “moon.” The “moon” radical appears in characters related to time, light, or celestial bodies. For example:
明 (míng) - ”bright”
期 (qī) - a period of time
Characters in the reading with the moon radical are:
有 (yǒu) - “to have, there is, there are”
朋 (péng) - ”friend”
Meat Radical:
月 （肉 ròu) means “meat.” The “meat” radical is common in characters related to the body, flesh, or health. For example:
肝 (gān) - “liver”
背 (bèi) - “back (of body)”
腿 (tuǐ) - “leg”
肩 (jiān) - “shoulder”
Determining the Meaning:
To determine whether 月 represents "moon" or "meat," consider the context and meaning of the entire character.
Yin-yang Character Groups:
问答 (wèn dá) = ask-reply; Q&A
粗细 (cū xì) = thick-thin; thickness
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My Mandarin is still not good enough to read through the whole story (probably know 50% of the characters) but the pinyin and English translation make it an excellent practice even at my level - and so much interesting vocabulary!
Cultural references like this make me want to learn Chinese even more - to be able to understand China and its people.
Thanks Todd!