耳闻 (ěr wén) — to hear about, to learn of through hearsay (formal/literary)
Definition
Literary 'to hear about / learn of through hearsay' — not from personal experience. Often paired with 目击 or 目睹 (see with one's own eyes), as in 耳闻不如目睹 (hearing is not as good as seeing).
verb
to hear aboutto learn of through hearsay (formal/literary)
Examples
- 耳闻，。Wǒ ěr wén guò zhè jiàn shì, dàn bú tài qīng chǔ xì jié.I've heard about this matter, but I'm not too clear on the details.
- 耳闻。Tā ěr wén le xǔ duō guān yú nà ge dì fāng de chuán shuō.He heard many legends about that place.
- 耳闻，。ěr wén Bù rú yí jiàn, nǐ hái shì zì jǐ qù kàn kàn ba.Hearing about it is not as good as seeing it in person — you should go see for yourself.
Appears in
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