逸闻 (yì wén) — (noun) anecdote, unrecorded story, piece of hearsay

Definition

A literary word for a short, often little-known anecdote — typically about historical figures or famous people. The example 轶闻 is the more common modern spelling.

noun
anecdoteunrecorded storypiece of hearsay
Easily confused

Examples

  • ，逸闻。
    Guān yú zhè wèi zuò jiā de shēng píng, yǒu xǔ duō yǒu qù de yì wén liú chuán xià lái.
    Many interesting anecdotes about this writer's life have been passed down.
  • 逸闻。
    Zhè běn shū lǐ shōu jí le bù shǎo lì shǐ rén wù de yì wén.
    This book collects quite a few anecdotes of historical figures.
  • 逸闻。
    Tā xǐ huan zài jù huì shàng jiǎng yì xiē xiǎn wéi rén zhī de yì wén.
    He likes to tell some little-known anecdotes at parties.

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.

逸yìunrecorded
闻wénheard story

逸 (unrecorded) and 闻 (heard story) give anecdotes not formally recorded.

Characters in this word

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

The old form of 逸 combined 止 and 㚔.

Open 逸 →

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 聞; 闻 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
耳耳ěrear
Sound part声符shēngfú
門
門mén聞wén
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 聞, 門 supplies the sound and 耳 is an ear; this explanation is about 聞, not the simplified 闻.

Open 闻 →

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