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八公草木
八公草木
八公草木
八公草木
八公草木
八公草木
八公草木
八公草木
八公草木
八公草木

八公草木 — “Ba Gong mountain's grass and trees”

八公草木 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be extremely nervous and fearful, imagining enemies in every bush and tree; to be in a state of extreme paranoia or panic”. Literally, “Ba Gong mountain's grass and trees”.

Frequency

八公草木 Pronunciation and Pinyin

八公草木 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order
CharacterPinyinStrokesMeaning
八
bā2the number eight
公
gōng4public, common, impartial
草
cǎo10grass, straw, draft, rough
木
mù4tree, wood, wooden, dull, numb

Example Sentence with 八公草木

小明因为夜路走得太急,心里七上八下,路上稍微有点风吹草动,他就觉得是有人跟着,真是八公草木。
Xiao Ming was so nervous from rushing on the dark road that every little rustle he heard made him think someone was following him; he was literally seeing enemies in every bush and tree.

Origin and Story of 八公草木

During the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Fu Jian, the king of Former Qin, intended to conquer the Eastern Jin. Xie An, the chancellor of Eastern Jin, appointed Xie Shi as the grand commander and dispatched troops along three routes to counter-attack the Qin army.

Fu Jian ascended the city of Shouchun, and upon seeing the orderly formation of the Jin army, he felt a sense of apprehension. The Jin forces then employed a tactic to encircle and attack Fu Jian's Qin army, resulting in a decisive defeat for Qin.

During their panicked retreat, the fleeing Qin soldiers mistook the shadows of the grass and trees on Ba Gong Mountain for pursuing enemy troops, demonstrating their extreme fear and paranoia.

Idioms Related to 八公草木

Synonyms of 八公草木

  • bā八gōng公shān山shàng上,,cǎo草mù木jiē皆bīng兵extreme panic, imagining every bush an enemy

More idioms starting with 八

  • bā八wàn万sì四qiān千innumerable; countless
  • bā八liǎng两bàn半jīn斤six of one, half a dozen of the other
  • bā八jiǔ九bù不lí离shí十very close to the mark
  • bā八xiān仙guò过hǎi海Each uses their unique skills to achieve a goal
  • bā八xiān仙guò过hǎi海,,gè各xiǎn显qí其néng能everyone shows their unique skills
  • bā八xiān仙guò过hǎi海,,gè各xiǎn显shén神tōng通Each shows their special skills
  • bā八zì字dǎ打kāi开take a roundabout or unconventional approach
  • bā八zì字méi没yī一piě撇nothing has been decided or started
  • bā八zì字méi没jiàn见yī一piě撇no sign of progress yet
  • bā八fǔ府xún巡àn按powerful imperial inspector of justice
  • bā八tái抬dà大jiào轿grand sedan chair for high-ranking officials

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Questions about 八公草木

What does 八公草木 mean?

八公草木 (bā gōng cǎo mù) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be extremely nervous and fearful, imagining enemies in every bush and tree; to be in a state of extreme paranoia or panic”.

How do you pronounce 八公草木?

八公草木 is pronounced bā gōng cǎo mù in Mandarin Chinese.

What does 八公草木 literally mean?

Literally, 八公草木 means “Ba Gong mountain's grass and trees”. It is used to mean “to be extremely nervous and fearful, imagining enemies in every bush and tree; to be in a state of extreme paranoia or panic”.

Where does 八公草木 come from?

八公草木 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.

What is the Chinese definition of 八公草木?

将八公山的草木视为敌人。形容心情极为紧张和恐惧

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