人じん面めん獣じゅう心しん

also: にんめんじゅうしん

じ

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じゅ

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Meanings

noun

beast in human form; human face but beastly heart

yojijukugo (four-character idiom)

A yojijukugo describing a person who appears human but has a cruel, brutish nature. Literary and somewhat old-fashioned; used in moral criticism.

彼かれは人じん面めん獣じゅう心しんの悪あく人にんだ。
He is a villain with a human face but a beastly heart.
人じん面めん獣じゅう心しんという言こと葉ばは、外がい見けんは人ひとでも心こころは獣けもののような者ものを指さす。
The phrase 'jinmen jūshin' refers to someone who looks human but has the heart of a beast.

See all 3 example sentences ›

Kanji

人person
面mask, face, features
獣animal, beast
心heart, mind, spirit

Related words

人ひとでなし
A more common, colloquial term for a heartless or inhuman person, while 人面獣心 is a literary yojijukugo.
鬼き畜ちく
Refers to a brute or fiend, often used in stronger condemnations; 人面獣心 emphasizes the contrast between human appearance and beastly nature.

Built from

人じん面めん+獣じゅう心しん

Written forms

人面獣心
- じんめんじゅうしん
  Standard kanji spelling for this yojijukugo.
- にんめんじゅうしん
  Alternate reading; less common than じんめんじゅうしん.
にんめんじゅうしん

Etymology

A yojijukugo of Chinese origin, combining 人面 (human face) and 獣心 (beast heart). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but it follows a common classical pattern of contrasting outward appearance with inner nature.