Chinese idiom · 成语
顺手牵羊
Meaning
To casually lead away a sheep; to take someone else's belongings when an opportunity arises.
Character by character
Origin and story
Literary expressionThe Liji (禮記), Qu Li I, gives a rule for presenting animals: a horse or sheep is led with the right hand, a dog with the left. Dictionaries associate this practical image of leading a sheep with the later expression, but the ritual passage itself describes an offering, not a theft.
The full idiom appears in Yuan drama, where leading someone away is compared to casually taking a sheep along. Later fiction also uses it for taking another person’s belongings when an opportunity presents itself. That opportunistic theft is its most familiar modern meaning.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
我的充电宝放在柜台上，转个身就被人顺手牵羊拿走了。
I left my power bank on the counter, and someone walked off with it the moment I turned around.
Usually implies opportunistic taking or theft; not a neutral synonym for doing someone a favor.