空穴来风 — “Wind comes from an empty cave”
空穴来风 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Rumors or news, though perhaps exaggerated, are usually not entirely without foundation or cause; there's often some truth or origin behind them”. Literally, “Wind comes from an empty cave”.
空穴来风 Pronunciation and Pinyin
空穴来风 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 空穴来风
Origin and Story of 空穴来风
During the Warring States period, Song Yu accompanied King Qingxiang of Chu to Lanta Terrace for leisure. Feeling a cool breeze, the King sighed, expressing that he shared this wind with his common people.
Song Yu seized the opportunity to advise the King, saying, 'A curved branch attracts a nest, and wind comes from an empty hole (枳句来巢，空穴来风).' He elaborated that different environments produce different kinds of wind. The wind that passes through your bright mountains and beautiful waters is fragrant, while the wind that blows through the narrow, murky alleys where the common people reside is foul-smelling.
The idiom '空穴来风' is derived from this anecdote, emphasizing that rumors or events, like wind from a cave, rarely arise without some underlying cause or origin, however slight.
Idioms Related to 空穴来风
Synonyms of 空穴来风
More idioms starting with 空
- kōng空zhōng中lóu楼gé阁castles in the air
- kōng空zhōng中jié结gòu构castles in the air
- kōng空qián前wèi未yǒu有unprecedented; never before existed
- kōng空qián前jué绝hòu后unprecedented and never to be surpassed
- kōng空kǒu口wú无píng凭Words alone are no proof
- kōng空kǒu口shuō说bái白huà话all talk and no action
- kōng空kǒu口shuō说kōng空huà话make empty promises
- kōng空gǔ古jué绝jīn今unprecedented and unique throughout history
- kōng空chéng城jì计deceive enemy with a show of strength
- kōng空tóu头rén人qíng情empty show of affection
- kōng空tóu头zhī支piào票empty promise
- kōng空shì室qīng清yě野clear fields and empty rooms
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Open the tool →Questions about 空穴来风
What does 空穴来风 mean?
空穴来风 (kōng xué lái fēng) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Rumors or news, though perhaps exaggerated, are usually not entirely without foundation or cause; there's often some truth or origin behind them”.
How do you pronounce 空穴来风?
空穴来风 is pronounced kōng xué lái fēng in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 空穴来风 literally mean?
Literally, 空穴来风 means “Wind comes from an empty cave”. It is used to mean “Rumors or news, though perhaps exaggerated, are usually not entirely without foundation or cause; there's often some truth or origin behind them”.
Where does 空穴来风 come from?
空穴来风 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 空穴来风?
穴：孔、洞；来：招致。有了洞穴才进风。比喻消息和谣言的传播不是完全没有原因的。也比喻流言乘机会传开来。