刮目相看
- Literal
- to rub one's eyes and look anew
- Figurative
- To see someone in a completely new light; to revise your opinion of them upward after they have visibly changed for the better.
Where does 刮目相看 come from?
In the state of Wu during the Three Kingdoms period, the general Lü Meng was brave but barely educated. His ruler Sun Quan urged him to study, and Lü Meng threw himself into reading so diligently that his knowledge advanced enormously. Later the brilliant strategist Lu Su spoke with him and was astonished at how learned he had become, remarking that he was no longer the rough soldier of old. Lü Meng replied that when a man of worth has been apart even three days, one should rub one's eyes and look at him afresh.
Source (出处): 《三国志》
How is 刮目相看 used? Two examples
- 他这几年进步太大了，真让人刮目相看。
He has improved so much these past few years that he really makes you see him in a new light.
- 没想到她的中文说得这么好，大家都对她刮目相看。
No one expected her Chinese to be so good; now everyone sees her in a whole new light.
In Wanyu, all 400 chengyu have audio on every sentence, and you can save them to your decks and review them with spaced repetition. Free.
