📖 Meaning
Describes bodies pressed close together, or a crowd so dense that people are physically touching shoulder to shoulder. It conveys a scene of tight crowding where individuals can barely move apart.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase traces to the Yuan dynasty, appearing in Liu Junxi's play 'Lai Sheng Zhai' (来生债), Act One, where a character complains about someone pressing close and reaching into their clothing. It later appears in Ming dynasty literature, notably Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng's 'Jin Ping Mei Cihua' (金瓶梅词话), Chapter 42, describing onlookers packed so tightly they could not be counted. Over time it became a standard expression for dense, jostling crowds.
💡 Example Usage
节日的街道上人山人海，游客们挨肩擦膀，热闹非凡。
The festival streets were packed with a sea of people, tourists pressing shoulder to shoulder in a bustling, lively scene.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 挨肩擦膀
- Pinyin: āi jiān cā bǎng
- Literal Translation: lean close, shoulder, rub, arm
- Category: Distance
- Characters: 4