如梦初醒 (rú mèng chū xǐng) — as if waking from a dream; a sudden realization or awakening
Definition
A chengyu meaning 'as if suddenly waking from a dream' — used for a late, startling moment of realizing the truth about something. The realization comes only after being confused or mistaken.
idiom
as if waking from a dreama sudden realization or awakening
Examples
- ，如梦初醒，。Tīng le tā de huà, wǒ rú mèng chū xǐng, zhōng yú míng bai le zhēn xiàng.After hearing his words, I felt as if waking from a dream and finally understood the truth.
- ，如梦初醒，。Kàn dào chéng jì dān, tā cái rú mèng chū xǐng, zhī dào zì jǐ píng shí bú gòu nǔ lì.Seeing the report card, he suddenly realized like waking from a dream that he hadn't worked hard enough.
- ，如梦初醒，。Zhí dào shī qù jī huì, tā cái rú mèng chū xǐng, hòu huǐ dāng chū méi yǒu zhēn xī.Only after losing the opportunity did she wake up as if from a dream, regretting not cherishing it earlier.
Origin
Compound word构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head
The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.
The 初醒 is pictured 如梦, as if a dream has just ended.
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