仗义疏财
zhàng yì shū cái
to give one’s money freely to help those in need
Character by character
仗zhàng
uphold
uphold
义yì
righteousness
righteousness
疏shū
give out
give out
财cái
wealth
wealth
Example
他做生意发了财，却仗义疏财，村里谁家有难处都去找他。
He made his fortune in business but gives freely: any family in the village in difficulty goes to him.
Tone: positive (praise).
Usage and origin
Song Jiang’s hallmark and the reason he is called 及时雨. 疏 here means to give out, as in 疏散 (to disperse), not “sparse”. Literary; in speech people say 为人仗义、出手大方.
Learn this in Lesson 250 · HSK 9+: 梁山好汉的绰号 (The nicknames of the Water Margin heroes)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
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