瞠目结舌 (chēng mù jié shé) — be wide-eyed and tongue-tied; dumbfounded

Definition

A four-character idiom describing extreme astonishment — eyes wide open (瞠目) and tongue tied in speechlessness (结舌). Stronger and more literary than everyday words like 惊讶.

idiom
be wide-eyed and tongue-tieddumbfounded

Examples

  • ，瞠目结舌。
    Tīng dào zhè ge jīng rén de xiāo xi, dà jiā dōu bù jīn chēng mù jié shé.
    Upon hearing this shocking news, everyone couldn't help but be dumbfounded.
  • 瞠目结舌。
    Tā de huí dá ràng zài chǎng de suǒ yǒu rén chēng mù jié shé.
    His answer left everyone present wide-eyed and tongue-tied.
  • ，瞠目结舌，。
    Kàn dào nà fú huà, wǒ jīng yà dé chēng mù jié shé, shuō bù chū huà lái.
    Seeing that painting, I was so astonished that I was dumbfounded and speechless.

Origin

Characters in this word

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
目目mù
Sound part声符shēngfú
堂
堂táng瞠chēng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

瞠 pairs 目 (eye) with 堂, which gives the sound.

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

目 began as a drawing of a human eye, turned sideways.

Open 目 →

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 結; 结 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mì
Sound part声符shēngfú
吉
吉jí結jié
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 結 pairs 糸 with 吉; 吉 gives the sound, and 糸 relates to the meaning. The simplified 结 is a later shorthand.

Open 结 →

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

舌 was drawn as a snake's forked tongue rising from an open mouth.

Open 舌 →

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