光怪陆离 (guāng guài lù lí) — bizarre and colorful; grotesque and dazzling (of lights, scenes, or artistic works)

Definition

Idiom describing strange, flashy, kaleidoscopic sights or artistic works — vivid and often dazzlingly weird. Used in written Chinese, typically for lights, scenery, or imaginative creations.

idiom
bizarre and colorfulgrotesque and dazzling (of lights, scenes, or artistic works)

Examples

  • 光怪陆离，。
    Yè shàng hǎi de dēng guāng guāng guài lù lí, ràng rén gǎn dào fēi cháng shén qí.
    The lights of Shanghai at night are bizarre and colorful, making people feel very magical.
  • 光怪陆离，。
    Dà zì rán zhōng nà xiē guāng guài lù lí de jǐng xiàng, ràng rén gǎn dào fēi cháng jīng qí.
    Those bizarre and colorful scenes in nature make people feel very amazed.
  • 光怪陆离，。
    Tā de huà zuò sè cǎi guāng guài lù lí, hěn yǒu xiǎng xiàng lì.
    His paintings have bizarre and colorful hues, full of imagination.

Origin

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 火火huǒfire
  • 卩卩jiékneeling person

The shape 光 places 火 (fire) above 卩 (a kneeling person), showing fire over the head and the shining of light.

Open 光 →

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
忄Written in full as心xīn
Sound part声符shēngfú
圣
圣shèng怪guài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

怪 is built from 忄, a form of 心, which relates to mind or feeling, and 圣, which gives the sound.

Open 怪 →

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 陸; 陆 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
阝Written in full as阜fù
Sound part声符shēngfú
坴
坴lù陸lù
Same sound today

The traditional form 陸 uses 阝 (written in full as 阜) for the meaning and 坴 for the sound; the simplified 陆 is a later shorthand.

Open 陆 →

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 離; 离 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
隹隹zhuībird
Sound part声符shēngfú
离
离lí離lí
Same sound today

The traditional form 離 pairs 隹, a bird, with the sound part 离; the simplified 离 is a shorthand. This form first wrote a black-naped oriole, and the sound was borrowed for 'leave'.

Open 离 →

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