📖 Meaning
Having extensive learning and a powerful memory. It describes a person who has acquired a wide range of knowledge and can retain it effortlessly. The phrase praises both the breadth of one's experience and the strength of one's recall.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase traces back to several classical texts. In the Xunzi, the philosopher Xunzi (Warring States period) wrote that a person of broad learning and strong memory who does not follow the king's proper institutions is looked down upon by the gentleman. The Book of Rites (Liji) from the Han dynasty describes a gentleman as one who is broadly learned and strong of memory yet remains humble, and who practices good deeds without tiring. Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji) used the same phrase to praise Qu Yuan's erudition and political acumen.
💡 Example Usage
这位老教授博闻强识，学生提出的任何问题他都能对答如流。
This elderly professor has such extensive learning and strong memory that he can answer any question his students raise with effortless fluency.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 博闻强识
- Pinyin: bó wén qiáng zhì
- Literal Translation: broadly hear, strongly remember
- Category: Knowledge
- Characters: 4