言简意少 — “To be brief in words but poor in substance”
言简意少 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be brief in words but poor in substance”. Concise language with meager content. Literally, “Words brief, meaning little”.
Frequency
言简意少 Pronunciation and Pinyin
言简意少 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 言简意少
他的发言言简意少，未能提出任何有建设性的建议。
His speech was brief and lacked substance, failing to offer any constructive suggestions.
Idioms Related to 言简意少
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
Recommended tools
Writing Worksheets
Printable tracing sheets with a QR learning companion
Open the tool →
Bingo Cards
Picture and word Bingo for your class
Open the tool →
Character Highlight Animator
Choose character parts and animate their colors, together or in stroke order
Open the tool →
Stroke Order Animator
Turn a Chinese character or sentence into a GIF or MP4
Open the tool →Questions about 言简意少
What does 言简意少 mean?
言简意少 (yán jiǎn yì shǎo) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be brief in words but poor in substance”.
How do you pronounce 言简意少?
言简意少 is pronounced yán jiǎn yì shǎo in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 言简意少 literally mean?
Literally, 言简意少 means “Words brief, meaning little”. It is used to mean “to be brief in words but poor in substance”.
What is the Chinese definition of 言简意少?
简：简练。语言简洁，内容贫乏。