不胫而走 (bù jìng ér zǒu) — to spread like wildfire (of news, rumors, information)

Definition

Literally 'run without legs', meaning news or rumors spread far and fast on their own, with no one deliberately carrying them. Used only for intangible information, not people or things moving.

idiom
to spread like wildfire (of news, rumors, information)

Examples

  • 不胫而走，。
    Zhè ge xiāo xi bù jìng ér zǒu, hěn kuài jiù chuán biàn le quán chéng.
    This news spread like wildfire and soon reached the whole city.
  • 不胫而走，。
    Tā dé jiǎng de xiāo xi bù jìng ér zǒu, dà jiā dōu lái zhù hè.
    News of his award spread like wildfire, and everyone came to congratulate him.
  • 不胫而走，。
    Zhè ge yáo yán bù jìng ér zǒu, gōng sī bù dé bù gōng kāi chéng qīng.
    The rumor spread like wildfire, and the company had to publicly clarify.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

The picture in 不 originally showed a flower’s calyx; the “no” sense came later from a related character, not from this picture.

Open 不 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 脛; 胫 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
肉肉ròumeat
Sound part声符shēngfú
巠
巠jīng脛jìng
Same sound today

The traditional form 脛 pairs 肉 (meat) with 巠, which gives the sound. The simplified 胫 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the historical parts.

Open 胫 →

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

The shape of 而 is a picture of a beard.

Open 而 →

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

The original shape showed a running man, with a foot added later.

Open 走 →

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