斷香火

Simplified: 断香火

duànxiānghuǒ ㄉㄨㄢˋ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄏㄨㄛˇ

    • to have no descendants to carry on the family line and worship ancestors

Character by character

Saying俗语俗語

Idiom惯用语 · Widely known

Literally
let the incense and fire go out
Meaning
To have no descendants to carry on the family and worship ancestors. A traditional concern, serious in tone.

Sources