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擦肩而过 (cā jiān ér guò) — to brush past someone (literally); to have a fleeting encounter; to narrowly miss meeting (figurative)

Definition

Idiom meaning two people pass so close their shoulders almost touch — literally a brush-past, figuratively a near-miss encounter. Often used to express fleeting, missed connections in life.

idiom
to brush past someone (literally)to have a fleeting encounterto narrowly miss meeting (figurative)

Examples

  • 擦肩而过，。
    Wǒ men zài jiē shàng cā jiān ér guò, què hù xiāng méi rèn chū lái.
    We brushed past each other on the street but didn't recognize each other.
  • ，擦肩而过，。
    Nà cì lǚ xíng zhōng, wǒ men yǔ yí wèi míng rén cā jiān ér guò, kě xī méi lái de jí hé yǐng.
    During that trip, we brushed past a celebrity, but unfortunately we didn't have time to take a photo.
  • 擦肩而过，。
    Rén shēng zhōng hěn duō yuán fèn dōu shì cā jiān ér guò, zhuǎn shùn jí shì.
    Many of life's fated encounters are just brushing past each other, fleeting.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
察
察chá擦cā
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left part 扌 is the hand, showing that 擦 is an action done with the hand, such as wiping or scrubbing; the right part 察 gives the sound.

Open 擦 →

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

肩 combines a shoulder shape with a flesh part to show a shoulder.

Open 肩 →

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 →

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 →
Appears in
Idioms & Set Phrases

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