万籁俱寂 (wàn lài jù jì) — (idiom) all is quiet; silence reigns supreme; a profound stillness

Definition

Literary idiom meaning 'utter silence' — every sound (万籁, 'ten thousand sounds') has died away (俱寂). Sets a poetic, atmospheric scene rather than just 'quiet', which is everyday.

idiom
all is quietsilence reigns supremea profound stillness

Examples

  • ，万籁俱寂，。
    Shēn yè, wàn lài jù jì, zhī tīng jiàn zì jǐ de xīn tiào shēng.
    In the dead of night, all was quiet; I could only hear my own heartbeat.
  • 万籁俱寂，。
    Xuě hòu de shān gǔ wàn lài jù jì, fǎng fú zhěng gè shì jiè dōu shuì zháo le.
    After the snow, the valley was utterly silent, as if the whole world had fallen asleep.
  • 万籁俱寂，。
    Kǎo shì shí jiào shì lǐ wàn lài jù jì, lián yì gēn zhēn diào zài dì shàng dōu tīng de jiàn.
    During the exam, the classroom was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Origin

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 萬; 万 is its simplified writing.

For 万, the form 萬 was originally a picture of a scorpion, later borrowed for its sound to write 'ten thousand'; the scorpion picture is unrelated to that number.

Open 万 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亻Written in full as人rén
Sound part声符shēngfú
具
具jù俱jù
Same sound today

俱 pairs 亻, a form of 人 (person), with 具 as the sound part.

Open 俱 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
宀宀miánhouse
Sound part声符shēngfú
叔
叔shū寂jì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

寂 is built from 宀, a house, and 叔, which gives its pronunciation.

Open 寂 →

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