thousands of horses silent; metaphor for universal silence
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 3 examplesidiom
thousands of horses are silent; a metaphor for a situation where people are afraid to speak out or express their opinions
literaryOriginally from a poem by the Qing dynasty poet Gong Zizhen (龚自珍). Often used to describe oppressive political or social atmospheres where free speech is suppressed.
Dāng当
shí时
wén文
tán坛
wàn万
mǎ马
qí齐
yīn喑
，
hěn很
shǎo少
yǒu有
chuàng创
xīn新
de的
zuò作
pǐn品
chū出
xiàn现
。
At that time, the literary world was deadly silent, with very few innovative works emerging.
Zài在
nà那
zhǒng种
yā压
yì抑
de的
huán环
jìng境
xià下
，
dà大
jiā家
dōu都
wàn万
mǎ马
qí齐
yīn喑
，
bù不
gǎn敢
fā发
biǎo表
zhēn真
shí实
xiǎng想
fǎ法
。
In that oppressive environment, everyone remained silent, afraid to express their true thoughts.
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Zhè这
gè个
huì会
yì议
kāi开
de得
wàn万
mǎ马
qí齐
yīn喑
，
méi没
yǒu有
rén人
gǎn敢
tí提
chū出
fǎn反
duì对
yì意
jiàn见
。
The meeting was conducted in complete silence, with no one daring to raise objections.