言之成理 — “What is said is well-reasoned and makes sense”
言之成理 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “What is said is well-reasoned and makes sense”. Logically sound and justifiable. Literally, “What is said forms reason”.
Frequency
言之成理 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 言yán
- 之zhī
- 成chéng
- 理lǐ
言之成理 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 言之成理
他的分析非常透彻，言之成理，大家都被说服了。
His analysis was very thorough and logically sound; everyone was convinced.
Origin and Story of 言之成理
During the Warring States period, Deng Xi, a grand master of the State of Zheng, was eloquent and skilled in debate.
He gathered crowds to lecture, advocated for rule of law, helped common people with lawsuits, and openly challenged the traditional rule of rites. His views and proposals were all well-reasoned.
He established the new penal code "Bamboo Penalties," advocating for criminal law reform and the implementation of rule of law, which met with strong opposition from the ruling nobles of Zheng.
Idioms Related to 言之成理
Synonyms of 言之成理
Antonyms of 言之成理
More idioms starting with 言
- yán言sān三yǔ语sì四chatter away
- yán言bù不èr二jià价fixed price, no bargaining
- yán言bù不jí及yì义talk about trivial matters
- yán言bù不jí及sī私speech not involving private matters
- yán言bù不jí及xíng行all talk and no action
- yán言bù不jìn尽yì意Words cannot fully express meaning
- yán言bù不yuàn愿xíng行words and actions do not match
- yán言bù不yóu由zhōng中speak insincerely
- yán言bù不yóu由zhōng衷speak insincerely
- yán言bù不guǐ诡suí随speak without deceit or opportunism
- yán言bù不ān谙diǎn典speak without classical allusions
- yán言bù不jiàn践xíng行fail to act on one's words
Questions about 言之成理
- What does 言之成理 mean?
- 言之成理 (yán zhī chéng lǐ) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “What is said is well-reasoned and makes sense”.
- How do you pronounce 言之成理?
- 言之成理 is pronounced yán zhī chéng lǐ in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 言之成理 literally mean?
- Literally, 言之成理 means “What is said forms reason”. It is used to mean “What is said is well-reasoned and makes sense”.
- Where does 言之成理 come from?
- 言之成理 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 言之成理?
- 之：代词，指所说的话。话说得有一定道理。