龙蛇飞动 — “Describes calligraphy or brushwork that is vigorous”

龙蛇飞动 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “describes calligraphy or brushwork that is vigorous”. Dynamic, and full of powerful energy, with strokes resembling dragons flying and snakes coiling. Literally, “Dragons flying and snakes moving”.

Frequency

龙蛇飞动 Pronunciation and Pinyin

龙蛇飞动 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
龙	lóng	5	mythical divine creature
蛇	shé	11	snake, compliant, tactful
飞	fēi	3	to fly rapidly
动	dòng	6	to move or act

Example Sentence with 龙蛇飞动

他的书法作品气势磅礴，笔法龙蛇飞动，令人赞叹不已

His calligraphy piece was grand and powerful, with strokes that were vigorous and dynamic, earning widespread admiration.

Origin and Story of 龙蛇飞动

During the Tang Dynasty, Prime Minister Zhang, despite having poor handwriting, particularly loved writing in cursive script. Instead of following conventional cursive rules, he invented his own style, making his characters appear like flying dragons and coiling snakes, which rendered them illegible to others.

This caused much trouble for his nephew, who helped him copy manuscripts.

One day, while copying a poem for Zhang, his nephew encountered a character he couldn't decipher and went to ask him. Zhang himself couldn't recognize the character either, yet he scolded his nephew for not asking him sooner.