一往情深
- Literal
- going wholly toward it, deep feeling
- Figurative
- To feel a deep, wholehearted devotion to someone or something that one cannot shake off; not love at first sight, but a profound and steadfast attachment.
Where does 一往情深 come from?
It comes from the 《世说新语》, the collection of anecdotes compiled by Liu Yiqing in the fifth century. It tells how Huan Yi, known as Ziye, could not hold back whenever he heard a beautiful song and would cry out, "Alas, what can one do!" On hearing of this, the statesman Xie An remarked that Ziye could be said to feel things to the very bottom once they touched him. The idiom grew out of that remark. Today it is used mostly for faithful, lasting love for a person, sometimes unrequited, and also for attachment to a place, an art or a calling.
Source (出处): 《世说新语·任诞》
How is 一往情深 used? Two examples
- 两人不是一见钟情,但结婚三十年,他对她始终一往情深。
It wasn't love at first sight, but through thirty years of marriage he has stayed deeply devoted to her.
- 老先生对昆曲一往情深,退休后每周都去戏园子听戏。
The old gentleman is utterly devoted to Kunqu opera; since retiring he goes to the theater every week to hear it.