epiphyllum; night-blooming cactus; metaphor for fleeting phenomena
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 4 examplesnoun
epiphyllum (Epiphyllum oxypetalum), a night-blooming cactus native to Mexico with large white flowers that open at night and last only a few hours; often used metaphorically for fleeting beauty or transient phenomena
The plant is famous for its nocturnal blooming habit and short-lived flowers, which has given rise to the idiom 昙花一现 (tán huā yī xiàn), meaning 'a flash in the pan' or 'ephemeral'.
Nǎi奶
nai奶
yǎng养
de的
tán昙
huā花
zhōng终
yú于
zài在
shēn深
yè夜
kāi开
le了
。
Grandma's epiphyllum finally bloomed late at night.
Tán昙
huā花
de的
huā花
qī期
suī虽
rán然
duǎn短
zàn暂
，
dàn但
jié洁
bái白
de的
huā花
duǒ朵
fēi非
cháng常
měi美
lì丽
。
Although the epiphyllum's blooming period is brief, its pure white flowers are extremely beautiful.
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Zhè这
zhǒng种
hǎn罕
jiàn见
de的
xiàn现
xiàng象
bù不
guò过
shì是
tán昙
huā花
yī一
xiàn现
，
zhuǎn转
yǎn眼
jiù就
xiāo消
shī失
le了
。
This rare phenomenon was nothing but a flash in the pan, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
Tā他
shōu收
jí集
le了
xǔ许
duō多
bù不
tóng同
pǐn品
zhǒng种
de的
tán昙
huā花
，
bǎi摆
mǎn满
le了
zhěng整
gè个
yáng阳
tái台
。
He collected many different varieties of epiphyllum, filling the entire balcony.