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危机四伏 (wēi jī sì fú) — (idiom) dangers lurk on every side; crisis-ridden

Definition

An idiom meaning hidden dangers or crises surround a situation on all sides. Often modifies an environment or 境地, as in 危机四伏的境地.

idiom
dangers lurk on every sidecrisis-ridden

Examples

  • ，危机四伏。
    Zhè ge háng yè biǎo miàn fán róng, shí zé wēi jī sì fú.
    This industry appears prosperous on the surface, but in reality dangers lurk everywhere.
  • 危机四伏，。
    Gōng sī mù qián wēi jī sì fú, bì xū jǐn kuài gǎi gé.
    The company is currently crisis-ridden and must reform as soon as possible.
  • 危机四伏，。
    Tā yì shí dào zì jǐ shēn chǔ wēi jī sì fú de jìng dì, bù gǎn qīng jǔ wàng dòng.
    He realized he was in a situation full of hidden dangers and dared not act rashly.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
主谓zhǔwèiSubject + predicate

A small sentence frozen into a word: something, and what it does or is.

危机dangerous situation
危wēidangerous机jīsituation
偏正Modifier + head
四伏lurk everywhere
四sìall sides伏fúlurk
偏正Modifier + head

危机 names a dangerous situation, and 四伏 says dangers lie on every side.

Characters in this word

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

  • 厃厃wěiperson on a cliff or mountain
  • 卩卩jiékneeling person

危 is built from 厃, showing a person on a cliff or mountain, and 卩, showing a kneeling person.

Open 危 →

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
木木mùtree; wood
Sound part声符shēngfú
几
几jǐ机jī
Same sound today

The left part is 木 (tree; wood), and the right part 几 gives the sound.

Open 机 →

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

The form 四 was drawn as a nose breathing out. It later came to be used for the word four.

Open 四 →

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

伏 combines 人 (person) and 犬 (dog), as a dog beside a person or a person taking a dog's low posture, to show lying prostrate.

Open 伏 →
Appears in
Idioms & Set PhrasesSafety & Danger

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