yǎngjiāhúkǒu: 养家糊口 - To support a family

• Keywords: yangjiahukou, 养家糊口, support a family in Chinese, provide for family Chinese, make a living Chinese idiom, Chinese chengyu about family, yǎngjiāhúkǒu meaning, Chinese work culture, family responsibility
• Summary: The Chinese idiom 养家糊口 (yǎngjiāhúkǒu) means “to support one's family and make ends meet.” More than a simple translation of “providing for a family,” this term captures the fundamental duty, pressure, and often the daily grind of working just to keep the family fed and sheltered. Understanding yǎngjiāhúkǒu is key to grasping the traditional and modern pressures related to work and family responsibility in Chinese culture.

• Pinyin (with tone marks): yǎng jiā hú kǒu
• Part of Speech: Chengyu (Chinese Idiom), used as a verb phrase.
• HSK Level: N/A (Considered advanced vocabulary, but extremely common in daily conversation).
• Concise Definition: To work to support one's family, especially just enough to get by.
• In a Nutshell: This isn't about getting rich or pursuing a passion. 养家糊口 is about the basic, often burdensome, responsibility of earning a living to put food on the table and a roof over your family's heads. It conveys a sense of duty, realism, and the everyday struggle of making a living.

• 养 (yǎng): To raise, to nurture, to support. Think of raising a child or livestock.
• 家 (jiā): Family, home. The character is a pictogram of a roof over a pig (豕), symbolizing domestic life.
• 糊 (hú): Originally meaning “paste” or “congee” (rice porridge). In this context, it means to just barely get by, to “paste” over the cracks of daily expenses.
• 口 (kǒu): Mouth. Here it's a measure word for people in a family—the “mouths to feed.”

These characters combine to paint a vivid picture: “to support the family (养家) by pasting shut the mouths (糊口)“. It implies providing the most basic sustenance (like congee) to feed the members of one's household.

• In Chinese culture, influenced heavily by Confucian values, the family unit is the cornerstone of society. The responsibility to provide for one's parents, spouse, and children is not just a personal choice but a deeply ingrained social and moral duty. 养家糊口 is the verbal embodiment of this duty.
• Comparison to Western Concepts: An English speaker might say “I'm the breadwinner” or “I've got to bring home the bacon.” While similar, these phrases can carry a connotation of pride and success. 养家糊口, however, is more grounded and often humble. It focuses on the struggle and the fulfillment of a fundamental obligation rather than on achievement. A billionaire “provides for his family,” but he doesn't work for 养家糊口—the term implies a life without significant luxury, focused on necessities. It reflects a collectivist mindset where individual ambition is often secondary to the family's collective survival and stability.

• 养家糊口 is an extremely common phrase used by adults in everyday conversation. It's often used to explain why they work a particular job, especially if it's not glamorous or exciting.
• Connotation: The term is neutral but can carry a slightly self-deprecating or weary tone. When someone says their high-pressure job is “just for 养家糊口,” they are expressing that it is a means to an end, not their life's passion. It's a way of acknowledging the practical pressures of life.
• Formality: As a `chengyu`, it has a classic, slightly formal structure, but it is used widely in informal, conversational settings among friends, family, and colleagues. It is not slang.

• Example 1:
  • 他每天努力工作，就是为了养家糊口。
  • Pinyin: Tā měitiān nǔlì gōngzuò, jiùshì wèile yǎngjiāhúkǒu.
  • English: He works hard every day just to support his family.
  • Analysis: This is a straightforward, neutral use of the term, stating the primary motivation for his hard work.
• Example 2:
  • A: “你喜欢你的工作吗？” B: “谈不上喜欢，不过是为了养家糊口罢了。”
  • Pinyin: A: “Nǐ xǐhuān nǐ de gōngzuò ma?” B: “Tánbushàng xǐhuān, bùguò shì wèile yǎngjiāhúkǒu bàle.”
  • English: A: “Do you like your job?” B: “I wouldn't say I like it; it's just to make a living, that's all.”
  • Analysis: This shows the common, slightly weary connotation. The phrase is used to lower expectations and express that the job is a necessity, not a passion. The word 罢了 (bàle) emphasizes the “that's all” feeling.
• Example 3:
  • 在大城市养家糊口的压力真的很大。
  • Pinyin: Zài dà chéngshì yǎngjiāhúkǒu de yālì zhēn de hěn dà.
  • English: The pressure of supporting a family in a big city is really immense.
  • Analysis: Here, the term is used as part of a larger noun phrase to describe the specific type of pressure people face.
• Example 4:
  • 爸爸辛苦了一辈子，就靠这点工资养家糊口。
  • Pinyin: Bàba xīnkǔ le yībèizi, jiù kào zhè diǎn gōngzī yǎngjiāhúkǒu.
  • English: Dad has worked hard his whole life, relying on just this small salary to provide for the family.
  • Analysis: This usage highlights the sense of struggle and making do with limited resources. It evokes sympathy and respect for the father's sacrifice.
• Example 5:
  • 不管做什么工作，能养家糊口才是最重要的。
  • Pinyin: Bùguǎn zuò shénme gōngzuò, néng yǎngjiāhúkǒu cái shì zuì zhòngyào de.
  • English: No matter what job you do, being able to support your family is the most important thing.
  • Analysis: This sentence expresses a very common and pragmatic value in Chinese culture: practicality and family responsibility often trump personal ambition.
• Example 6:
  • 为了养家糊口，他不得不背井离乡去外地打工。
  • Pinyin: Wèile yǎngjiāhúkǒu, tā bùdébù bèijǐnglíxiāng qù wàidì dǎgōng.
  • English: In order to support his family, he had no choice but to leave his hometown to work elsewhere.
  • Analysis: This connects 养家糊口 to the common phenomenon of migrant workers (打工), highlighting the sacrifices made for family.
• Example 7:
  • 她一个人养家糊口，还要照顾生病的父母，真不容易。
  • Pinyin: Tā yīgè rén yǎngjiāhúkǒu, hái yào zhàogù shēngbìng de fùmǔ, zhēn bù róngyì.
  • English: She supports the family all by herself and also has to take care of her sick parents; it's really not easy.
  • Analysis: This shows the term being used to describe the burden on a single person, emphasizing their strength and the difficulty of their situation.
• Example 8:
  • 别看他只是个司机，这份收入足够他养家糊口了。
  • Pinyin: Bié kàn tā zhǐshì ge sījī, zhè fèn shōurù zúgòu tā yǎngjiāhúkǒu le.
  • English: Don't look down on him for being just a driver; this income is enough for him to provide for his family.
  • Analysis: Here, the phrase defines a threshold of “enough.” It implies his income is sufficient for necessities, even if not for luxuries.
• Example 9:
  • 许多年轻人对未来感到焦虑，担心自己以后无法养家糊口。
  • Pinyin: Xǔduō niánqīngrén duì wèilái gǎndào jiāolǜ, dānxīn zìjǐ yǐhòu wúfǎ yǎngjiāhúkǒu.
  • English: Many young people feel anxious about the future, worrying they won't be able to support a family later on.
  • Analysis: This demonstrates how the concept is a major source of modern social pressure for the younger generation.
• Example 10:
  • 他的画画爱好不能当饭吃，最后还是找了份稳定的工作来养家糊口。
  • Pinyin: Tā de huàhuà àihào bùnéng dāng fàn chī, zuìhòu háishì zhǎole fèn wěndìng de gōngzuò lái yǎngjiāhúkǒu.
  • English: His hobby of painting couldn't “be eaten as food” (i.e., couldn't make a living), so in the end he found a stable job to support his family.
  • Analysis: This highlights the classic conflict between passion and the practical necessity of 养家糊口.

• Don't use it for the wealthy: The most common mistake is to use 养家糊口 to describe a wealthy person's work. A CEO who earns millions works to “support his family” in the English sense, but in Chinese, his work is for `实现自我价值` (shíxiàn zìwǒ jiàzhí - to realize his self-worth) or to `创造财富` (chuàngzào cáifù - to create wealth), not simply to 养家糊口.
• Incorrect Usage Example:
  • Wrong: 马云努力工作也是为了养家糊口。(Mǎ Yún nǔlì gōngzuò yěshì wèile yǎngjiāhúkǒu.) - Jack Ma also works hard to make ends meet.
  • Why it's wrong: This sounds absurd in Chinese. Jack Ma's wealth is far beyond the level of “糊口” (just feeding mouths). The term implies subsistence, not massive fortune.
  • Better: 他努力工作是为了让家人过上更好的生活。(Tā nǔlì gōngzuò shì wèile ràng jiārén guò shàng gèng hǎo de shēnghuó.) - He works hard to let his family live a better life.

• 顶梁柱 (dǐngliángzhù) - The main pillar/mainstay of a family. This is a complimentary term for the person who bears the responsibility of `养家糊口`.
• 赚钱 (zhuànqián) - To earn money. This is the direct action, while `养家糊口` is the motivation behind it.
• 谋生 (móushēng) - To make a living. A close synonym, but slightly more formal and can refer to supporting just oneself, whereas `养家糊口` always implies supporting a family.
• 打工 (dǎgōng) - To work a job (for an employer). This is what many people do in order to `养家糊口`.
• 房贷 (fángdài) - Mortgage. A primary component of the financial pressure behind `养家糊口` in modern China.
• 上班族 (shàngbānzú) - Office worker/commuter class. The demographic that often feels the daily grind of working for `养家糊口`.
• 压力山大 (yālì shān dà) - A popular modern slang term meaning “a mountain of pressure,” which is often caused by the need to `养家糊口`.
• 过日子 (guò rìzi) - To live one's life, to get by. This term shares the same feeling of daily routine and making ends meet.