破釜沉舟pò fǔ chén zhōuto cut off one's means of retreat

1. 1.

   to cut off one's means of retreatidiom

2. 2.

   to burn one's boatsidiom

Figurative meaning

To cut off one's means of retreat; to burn one's boats.

Literal meaning

To break the cauldrons and sink the boats.

• 破to break, split or cleave
• 釜cauldron
• 沉to sink
• 舟boat

The story

Xiang Yu led his whole army across the river, then sank all the boats, broke the cooking pots, burned the shelters, and carried only three days of food, to show his soldiers they must fight to the death with no thought of going back.

破釜沉舟 can describe a firm decision to go all in with no way back.

1. HSK 3

   他决定破釜沉舟，离开公司去做自己的事。

   Tā juédìng pò fǔ chén zhōu, líkāi gōngsī qù zuò zìjǐ de shì.

   He decided to burn his boats, leave the company, and do his own thing.

2. HSK 3

   这是最后的机会，我们只能破釜沉舟。

   Zhè shì zuìhòu de jīhuì, wǒmen zhǐ néng pò fǔ chén zhōu.

   This is the last chance; we can only cut off our means of retreat.

1. 
   Speaker A:

   你真的要离开公司吗？

   Nǐ zhēn de yào líkāi gōngsī ma?

   Are you really leaving the company?

2. 
   Speaker B:

   是的，我已经决定了。

   Shì de, wǒ yǐjīng juédìng le.

   Yes, I've already decided.

3. 
   Speaker A:

   以后不能回去了。

   Yǐhòu bù néng huíqu le.

   You won't be able to go back later.

4. 
   Speaker B:

   我知道，这次我要破釜沉舟。

   Wǒ zhīdào, zhè cì wǒ yào pò fǔ chén zhōu.

   I know; this time I'm going to burn my boats.

1. 1.What does 破釜沉舟 mean?

   ATo cut off one's means of retreatBTo cook a big mealCTo fix a boat
2. 2.Which sentence uses 破釜沉舟 correctly?

   A这是最后的机会，我们只能破釜沉舟。B这个菜很破釜沉舟。C他破釜沉舟地睡觉。
3. 3.Which word fits best? 我已经决定了，这次要____。 (I've already decided; this time I'm going to burn my boats.)

   A破釜沉舟B九牛一毛C惊弓之鸟

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