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过眼云烟 (guò yǎn yún yān) — (idiom) as transient as fleeting clouds; ephemeral and quickly forgotten

Definition

A literary 成语 meaning something passes by the eye like clouds and smoke — here briefly, then gone forever. Used for honors, troubles, or fame that once seemed important but are now forgotten.

idiom
as transient as fleeting cloudsephemeral and quickly forgotten

Examples

  • 过眼云烟，。
    Nà xiē róng yù duì wǒ lái shuō yǐ jīng chéng le guò yǎn yún yān, bú zài zhòng yào le.
    Those honors have become like fleeting smoke to me; they no longer matter.
  • 过眼云烟，。
    Guò qù de fán nǎo dōu rú guò yǎn yún yān, bú bì zài fàng zài xīn shàng.
    Past troubles are like passing clouds; there is no need to dwell on them.
  • ，过眼云烟，。
    Duì tā lái shuō, míng lì bú guò shì guò yǎn yún yān, tā gèng kàn zhòng jiā tíng.
    To him, fame and wealth are just fleeting clouds; he values family more.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 過; 过 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辵辵chuòwalk
Sound part声符shēngfú
咼
咼wāi過guò
Same sound today

The traditional form 過 pairs 辵 (walk) with 咼 as a sound component; the simplified 过 is a shorthand, and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 过 →

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mùeye
Sound part声符shēngfú
艮
艮gèn眼yǎn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

眼 combines 目, which is an eye, with 艮, which gives the character's sound.

Open 眼 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 雲; 云 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 雲 is 雨 (rain) plus 云; 云 was the original writing for 'cloud', and 雨 was added to separate it from the borrowed sense 'to say'.

Open 云 →

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 煙; 烟 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 烟 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (烟) it is 煙; in others it is 菸.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
火火huǒfire
Sound part声符shēngfú
垔
垔yīn煙yān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

This story is about the traditional form 煙, not the simplified 烟. It pairs 火, fire, with 垔, which gives the sound.

Open 烟 →
Appears in
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