Definition
半路出家 originally referred to becoming a Buddhist monk or nun late in life — literally 'leave home halfway'. Today you'll almost always hear it figuratively: it describes someone who changes careers or takes up a new field without formal training, like a 'late bloomer' or 'second-career starter' in English. It carries a neutral or slightly admiring tone, implying you switched paths later than usual but are doing it anyway.
f.e.
(figurative) to switch to a new profession or field without formal training(literal) to become a monk or nun late in life
Examples
- ，半路出家。Tā xué de shì kuàijì, hòulái bàn lù chū jiā zuò le chéngxùyuán.He studied accounting and later switched to programming without formal training.
- ，半路出家，。Bié kàn tā xiànzài shì zhùmíng dǎoyǎn, qíshí shì bàn lù chū jiā, yǐqián zài gōngchǎng shàngbān de.Don't be fooled by his fame as a director — he actually made a late career switch, having worked in a factory before.
- 半路出家，。Zhè wèi gāosēng bàn lù chū jiā, sìshí suì cái chūjiā xiūxíng.This eminent monk became a monk late in life; he didn't ordain until forty.
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