蜂拥而至 (fēng yōng ér zhì) — to swarm in; to come in huge numbers | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A vivid image idiom: people or things arrive like a swarm of bees, in a sudden, overwhelming crowd. Pairs with 一…就… to stress immediacy.

idiom

to swarm into come in huge numbers

Examples

，蜂拥而至。
Yì tīng dào zhè ge xiāo xi, rén men fēng yōng ér zhì.
As soon as they heard the news, people swarmed in.
，蜂拥而至。
Zhǎn lǎn huì kāi mù nà tiān, cān guān zhě fēng yōng ér zhì.
On the opening day of the exhibition, visitors swarmed in.
，蜂拥而至。
Xīn chǎn pǐn yí shàng shì, gù kè men fēng yōng ér zhì.
As soon as the new product was launched, customers swarmed in.

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.

虫夆蜂

Meaning part形符xíngfú

虫虫chónginsect

Sound part声符shēngfú

夆

夆páng蜂fēng

Same sound today

蜂 puts 虫, showing an insect, beside 夆, which gives its sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

扌用拥

Meaning part形符xíngfú

扌Written in full as手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

用

用yòng拥yōng

Same sound today

拥 pairs 扌 (hand) with 用, which gives the sound.

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.

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

至 is drawn as an arrow stuck into the ground.

Appears in

Idioms & Set Phrases

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