CHENGYU
一落千丈(yī luò qiān zhàng)meaning, story and origin
- Register:
- neutral
- Source:
- 唐·韩愈《听颖师弹琴》
MEANING
- Literal
- to drop a thousand zhang at once
- Figurative meaning
- a precipitous fall; a dramatic decline
ORIGIN STORY
Han Yu's poem on a lute player describes the music's impossible heights: "It climbs where not an inch of foothold remains — and slips, plummeting a thousand zhang." The fall of the notes became the fall of fortunes.
NATURAL EQUIVALENT
“to take a nosedive”
EXAMPLES
公司倒闭后，他的名声一落千丈。Gōngsī dǎobì hòu, tā de míngshēng yī luò qiān zhàng.HSK6
After the company collapsed, his reputation plummeted a thousand zhang.
销量一落千丈，老板急坏了。Xiāoliàng yī luò qiān zhàng, lǎobǎn jí huài le.HSK6
Sales nosedived, and the boss was beside himself.
COMMON MISTAKE
Watch out: It is a steep decline in status, fortune, or reputation — not a slow slide or a physical fall.
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TRUST & SOURCES
- Reviewed by
- AI-assisted editorial review
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-15
- CC-CEDICT 2026-01-01