關公面前耍大刀 guān gōng miàn qián shuǎ dà dāo

DEFINITIONS

  1. lit. to wield the broadsword in the presence of Lord Guan (idiom)
  2. fig. to make a fool of oneself by showing off in front of an expert

CHARACTERS

關 guān frontier pass; close; relation
公 gōng fair, equitable; public; duke
面 miàn face; surface; plane; side, dimension
前 qián in front, forward; preceding
耍 shuǎ frolic, play, amuse, play with
大 dà big, great, vast, large, high
刀 dāo knife; old coin; measure