一言以蔽之 — “To sum up in a single word”
一言以蔽之 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to sum up in a single word”. To put it in a nutshell; to summarize succinctly. Literally, “To cover it with one word”.
Frequency
一言以蔽之 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 一yī
- 言yán
- 以yǐ
- 蔽bì
- 之zhī
一言以蔽之 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 一言以蔽之
这项计划细节很多，但一言以蔽之，目标就是提高效率。
This plan has many details, but to sum it up in a word, the goal is to improve efficiency.
Origin and Story of 一言以蔽之
The Book of Odes (Shijing), China's earliest anthology of poetry, comprises 305 pieces. Compiled during the Spring and Autumn period, it is divided into three sections: Feng, Ya, and Song, and has always been highly praised.
When Confucius edited The Book of Odes, he famously commented: 'The three hundred poems in The Book of Odes can be summed up in one sentence: their thought is entirely pure, without any evil.' This statement is the origin of the idiom '一言以蔽之' (yī yán yǐ bì zhī), meaning to sum up in a word.
Idioms Related to 一言以蔽之
Synonyms of 一言以蔽之
More idioms starting with 一
- yī一dīng丁bù不shí识completely illiterate
- yī一dīng丁diǎn点er儿a tiny bit
- yī一bù不zuò作，，èr二bù不xiū休Finish what you start
- yī一bù不zuò做，，èr二bù不xiū休in for a penny, in for a pound
- yī一bù不yā压zhòng众，，bǎi百bù不suí随yī一The minority cannot prevail against the majority
- yī一bù不niǔ扭zhòng众One person cannot defy the crowd
- yī一shì世zhī之xióng雄A hero of a generation
- yī一shì世lóng龙mén门A generation's revered influential figure
- yī一qiū丘yī一hè壑live contentedly in nature
- yī一qiū丘zhī之hé貉birds of a feather
- yī一sī丝yī一háo毫the slightest amount
- yī一sī丝bù不luàn乱perfectly orderly and neat
Questions about 一言以蔽之
- What does 一言以蔽之 mean?
- 一言以蔽之 (yī yán yǐ bì zhī) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to sum up in a single word”.
- How do you pronounce 一言以蔽之?
- 一言以蔽之 is pronounced yī yán yǐ bì zhī in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 一言以蔽之 literally mean?
- Literally, 一言以蔽之 means “to cover it with one word”. It is used to mean “to sum up in a single word”.
- Where does 一言以蔽之 come from?
- 一言以蔽之 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 一言以蔽之?
- 蔽：遮，引伸为概括。用一句话来概括。