成语故事：曲突徙薪 Take precautions against a possible danger

曲突徙薪

qū tū xǐ xīn

Take precautions against a possible danger

曲 means to bend or a curve, 突 means to protrude, 徙 means to remove, 薪 stands for firewood. The idiom is used to imply that precautions should be taken against a possible danger. Nowadays this idiom is no longer being used in people's daily lives, but the story itself is still quite popular among those who are interested in Chinese language and literature.

Literal meaning: bend the chimney and remove the firewood

Explanation: take precautions against a possible danger

E.g

我们应该曲突徙薪，在山火来临之前把这些汽油桶移走。

wǒ men yīng gāi qǔ tū xǐ xīn ，zài shān huǒ lái lín zhī qián bǎ zhè xiē qì yóu tǒng yí zǒu 。

We should take precautions against a possible danger to remove these gasoline can before the mountain fire.

If you want to learn more about fun Chinese, you can find our program

Takeaway Chinese on NEWS Plus radio

5: 00-5:30

16:00-16:30

You can listen our program online:

http://chinaplus.cri.cn/nihao/takeaway-chinese/index.html