噤若寒蟬

Chinese

unable to speak; silent
to seem; like; as
to seem; like; as; if
 
 cicada in winter; a kind of cicada that is small in size and bluegreen-red in colour
trad. (噤若寒蟬) 噤 若 寒蟬
simp. (噤若寒蝉) 噤 若 寒蝉

Etymology

Cicadas sing in summer and autumn than die soon. The ancients did not realize this and thought cicadas could not make a sound when it was cold, so they use it to describe not dare to speak out. From the Book of the Later Han:

劉勝位為大夫，見禮上賓，而知善不薦，聞惡無言，隱情惜己，自同寒蟬，此罪人也。 [Literary Chinese, trad.]
刘胜位为大夫，见礼上宾，而知善不荐，闻恶无言，隐情惜己，自同寒蝉，此罪人也。 [Literary Chinese, simp.]
From: The Book of the Later Han, circa 5th century CE
Liú Shèng wèi wèi dàfū, jiàn lǐ shàngbīn, ér zhī shàn bù jiàn, wén è wúyán, yǐnqíng xī jǐ, zì tóng hánchán, cǐ zuìrén yě. [Pinyin]
As a scholar-official, Liu Sheng was treated like a distinguished guest, but he couldn't recommend virtuous person, refused to refute evil words, pretended to be deaf and mute, cherished his reputation, and kept silent, he's a sinner.

Pronunciation

Idiom

噤若寒蟬

  1. to remain silent out of fear; to refrain unwillingly from speaking out
    自從被上司數落之後，他便噤若寒蟬，再也不敢發表意見了。 [MSC, trad.]
    自从被上司数落之后，他便噤若寒蝉，再也不敢发表意见了。 [MSC, simp.]
    Zìcóng bèi shàngsī shǔluò zhī hòu, tā biàn jìnruòhánchán, zài yě bùgǎn fābiǎo yìjiàn le. [Pinyin]
    Ever since he was scolded by his boss, he had become silent and never dared to express his opinions again.

Antonyms

References

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