戛然而止 (jiá rán ér zhǐ) — (idiom) to stop abruptly; to come to a sudden halt (often of sounds, music, or actions)

Definition

An idiom for something stopping very abruptly — usually a sound, speech, or action — often at a striking or unexpected moment. Pairs most naturally with sounds (音乐) or speech (说话).

idiom
to stop abruptlyto come to a sudden halt (often of sounds, music, or actions)

Examples

  • 戛然而止，。
    Yīn yuè jiá rán ér zhǐ, quán chǎng yā què wú shēng.
    The music stopped abruptly, and the whole venue fell dead silent.
  • ，戛然而止。
    Tā zhèng shuō dào guān jiàn chù, tū rán jiá rán ér zhǐ.
    He was just getting to the critical point when he suddenly stopped short.
  • 戛然而止，。
    Diàn yǐng zài zuì gāo cháo shí jiá rán ér zhǐ, ràng guān zhòng shí fēn yì wài.
    The film stopped abruptly at its climax, leaving the audience very surprised.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

  • 𦣻𦣻𦣻head
  • 戈戈gēhalberd

戛 is made from 𦣻 (head) and 戈 (halberd).

Open 戛 →

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
火火huǒfire
Sound part声符shēngfú
肰
肰rán然rán
Same sound today

然 is made from 肰, which gives the sound, and 火, which shows fire, matching the old sense 'to burn'.

Open 然 →

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

The shape of 而 is a picture of a beard.

Open 而 →

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

止 was drawn as a footprint pointing up, with three toes and a sole, originally showing a foot.

Open 止 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.