一叶障目 — “A single leaf blocks one's vision”
一叶障目 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Unable to see the bigger picture or the whole situation because one is focused on a trivial detail; to be shortsighted or have a narrow perspective”. Literally, “a single leaf blocks one's vision”.
一叶障目 Pronunciation and Pinyin
一叶障目 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 一叶障目
Origin and Story of 一叶障目
There once was a pedant who, having read in an ancient book about a 'cicada's leaf' (蝉翳叶) that was said to grant invisibility, believed it to be true.
He searched everywhere, collecting all the leaves from where cicadas hid. He brought them home, covered his face with one, and asked his wife if she could see him as an experiment.
His wife, annoyed, replied that she could not. Convinced the leaf worked, he then took it to the market to commit theft.
When he was caught, he exclaimed, 'I had a leaf blocking my vision (一叶障目), how could you possibly see me?'
Idioms Related to 一叶障目
Synonyms of 一叶障目
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
Recommended tools
Writing Worksheets
Printable tracing sheets with a QR learning companion
Open the tool →
Stroke Order Animator
Turn a Chinese character or sentence into a GIF or MP4
Open the tool →
Chinese Text Image Generator
Create PNGs with pinyin, highlight character parts or remove strokes
Open the tool →
Picture Worksheets
Chinese and English fill-in vocabulary worksheets
Open the tool →Questions about 一叶障目
What does 一叶障目 mean?
一叶障目 (yī yè zhàng mù) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Unable to see the bigger picture or the whole situation because one is focused on a trivial detail; to be shortsighted or have a narrow perspective”.
How do you pronounce 一叶障目?
一叶障目 is pronounced yī yè zhàng mù in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 一叶障目 literally mean?
Literally, 一叶障目 means “a single leaf blocks one's vision”. It is used to mean “Unable to see the bigger picture or the whole situation because one is focused on a trivial detail; to be shortsighted or have a narrow perspective”.
Where does 一叶障目 come from?
一叶障目 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to modern Chinese. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 一叶障目?
眼睛被一片树叶挡住，指看不到事物的全貌。