People & Bonds
糟糠之妻
조강지처
zāo kāng zhī qī
Jo-gang-ji-cheo
糟
술지게미 조
糠
겨 강
之
갈 지
妻
아내 처
Character by character
Meaning
The wife who shared the dregs and chaff — a spouse who endured poverty with you.
Origin
From the Book of the Later Han: Song Hong refused to set aside the wife who had been with him when he was poor.
How it is used
Said of a partner who came through the hard years with you.
Frequently asked questions
Q. What does Jo-gang-ji-cheo mean?
糟糠之妻 · The wife who shared the dregs and chaff — a spouse who endured poverty with you.
Q. Where does Jo-gang-ji-cheo come from?
From the Book of the Later Han: Song Hong refused to set aside the wife who had been with him when he was poor.
Q. How is Jo-gang-ji-cheo used?
Said of a partner who came through the hard years with you.
Idioms in the same group
The idioms used in Korea mix phrases from the Chinese classics with ones coined in Korea. Where an expression is not used in China, the entry says so.