风光一时 (fēng guāng yī shí) — to enjoy a brief period of glory or popularity

Definition

A chengyu for having a short burst of fame or success. Unlike 功成名就 (lasting achievement), the 一时 explicitly signals the glory was brief and did not last.

verb
to enjoy a brief period of glory or popularity

Examples

  • 风光一时，。
    Nà ge yǎn yuán nián qīng shí fēng guāng yī shí, xiàn zài hěn shǎo yǒu rén jì de tā le.
    That actor had a moment of glory when he was young, but few people remember him now.
  • 风光一时，。
    Zhè zhǒng liú xíng kuǎn shì zhǐ shì fēng guāng yī shí, guò liǎng nián jiù méi rén chuān le.
    This trendy style only enjoyed brief popularity; in a couple of years no one will wear it.
  • 风光一时，。
    Zhè jiā cān tīng yīn wèi yí dào cài fēng guāng yī shí, hòu lái zhì liàng xià jiàng jiù lěng qīng le.
    This restaurant had its moment of fame thanks to one dish, but later the quality dropped and it became quiet.

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.

风光glory; scenery
风fēngwind光guānglight
联合Side by side
一时a brief period
一yīone时shítime
偏正Modifier + head

风光 gives the glory, and 一时 gives the brief period.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 风 →

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

  • 火火huǒfire
  • 卩卩jiékneeling person

The shape 光 places 火 (fire) above 卩 (a kneeling person), showing fire over the head and the shining of light.

Open 光 →

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

一 is drawn as one horizontal stroke, marking the number one.

Open 一 →

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 時; 时 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
日日rìsun; day
Sound part声符shēngfú
之
之zhī時shí
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 時 pairs 日 (sun/day) with 之 as the part that gives the sound; the simplified 时 is not the form described.

Open 时 →

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