imminent peril; hang by a thread
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 3 examplesidiom
hanging by a thread; in imminent peril; a hundredweight hanging by a hair
literaryLiterary chengyu describing a critical, dangerous situation. Variant form of 千钧一发 (qiān jūn yī fà), with identical meaning but reversed word order.
Zài在
zhè这
qiān千
jūn钧
yī一
fà发
zhī之
jì际
，
tā他
tǐng挺
shēn身
ér而
chū出
。
At this critical moment, he stepped forward bravely.
Xíng形
shì势
yī一
fà发
qiān千
jūn钧
，
wǒ我
men们
bì必
xū须
lì立
jí即
cǎi采
qǔ取
xíng行
dòng动
。
The situation is hanging by a thread; we must take action immediately.
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Zhè这
chǎng场
shì事
gù故
yī一
fà发
qiān千
jūn钧
，
xìng幸
ér而
jiù救
yuán援
jí及
shí时
。
This accident was a matter of life and death; fortunately rescue came in time.