闻雷失箸 — “To feign surprise or fear”

Q: What is the Chinese definition of 闻雷失箸?

比喻借别的事情掩饰自己的真实情况。

闻雷失箸 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to feign surprise or fear”. Often by reacting to an unrelated event, in order to conceal one's true thoughts, intentions, or a genuine moment of shock. Literally, “Hear thunder, drop chopsticks”.

Frequency

闻雷失箸 Pronunciation and Pinyin

闻雷失箸 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
闻	wén	9	hear, smell, news, fame
雷	léi	13	thunder, mine, shocking, boundary
失	shī	5	lose, miss, or fail
箸	zhù	14	Chopsticks

Example Sentence with 闻雷失箸

当老板突然提到裁员计划时，小李闻雷失箸，赶紧假装去看手机，以掩饰自己的紧张。

When the boss suddenly mentioned the layoff plan, Xiao Li heard thunder and dropped his chopsticks, quickly pretending to check his phone to hide his nervousness.

Origin and Story of 闻雷失箸

During the late Eastern Han Dynasty, powerful warlords emerged, and Liu Bei from Zhuo County also raised an army amidst the chaos. Due to the recommendation of Tao Qian, the Governor of Xuzhou, Liu Bei led his troops to garrison Xuzhou and Xiapi areas in 196 AD (Jian'an Year 1). However, he was soon defeated by Lu Bu and Yuan Shu and had no choice but to seek refuge with Cao Cao.

Cao Cao knew Liu Bei was a courageous and insightful man, so he treated him with great respect. However, Liu Bei always harbored different ambitions. At that time, Emperor Xian of Han, Liu Xie, discontent with Cao Cao's authoritarian rule, concealed a secret imperial decree in his belt, ordering Dong Cheng, the General of Chariots and Cavalry, to organize forces to eliminate Cao Cao. Liu Bei was also one of the individuals contacted by Dong Cheng.

While Dong Cheng and others were secretly plotting, one day Cao Cao came to Liu Bei's residence. The two drank wine and chatted idly. Cao Cao suddenly asked Liu Bei, "Who do you think can be called a hero in today's world?" Liu Bei deliberately said, "I think Yuan Shao can be considered a hero." Cao Cao shook his head and said, "I say, in today's world, only you and I can be called heroes! Someone like Yuan Shao is simply not worthy!"

What Liu Bei feared most was Cao Cao knowing his true intentions. Therefore, for many days, he had been pretending to be an ordinary, unremarkable person, often spending time in his vegetable garden, hoping Cao Cao would see him as a common man without grand ambitions. Now, Cao Cao openly called him a hero, and he was greatly startled, so much so that the chopsticks in his hand fell to the ground. Coincidentally, at that moment, a sudden peal of thunder rang out. Liu Bei seized the opportunity to cover up, saying, "That thunder was so loud it startled me, and I dropped my chopsticks."

After realizing Cao Cao's perception of him, Liu Bei resolved to participate in the plot by Dong Cheng and others to eliminate Cao Cao. However, before they could act, Cao Cao discovered their plot, and Dong Cheng, Wang Zifu, Wu Zilan, and others were executed. Only Liu Bei and Ma Teng, who was in another region, escaped.