名不见经传 (míng bú) — not well-known; obscure; lacking fame
Definition
Literally "name not seen in the classics," this idiom means a person or thing is obscure and has no recorded reputation — not just unknown, but unrecorded in any standard history.
idiom
not well-knownobscurelacking fame
Examples
- 名不见经传，。Zhè wèi zuò jiā suī rán míng bú, dàn tā de zuò pǐn hěn yǒu shēn dù.Although this writer is not well-known, his works are very profound.
- 名不见经传。Nà jiā míng bú de xiǎo diàn què zuò chū le quán chéng zuì hǎo de miàn tiáo.That obscure little shop makes the best noodles in the whole city.
- 名不见经传，。Tā lái zì yí gè míng bú de xiǎo zhèn, què chéng le guó jì zhī míng de kē xué jiā.He came from an obscure small town but became an internationally renowned scientist.
Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.