📖 Meaning
To become a laughingstock that is spread and talked about by others. It refers to a person or event being passed around as material for ridicule and mockery. The phrase emphasizes the public and widespread nature of the embarrassment.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from the Qing dynasty novel Qilu Yuan's Qiludeng (《歧路灯》) by Li Lvyuan. In the story, a matchmaker handles a marriage arrangement so poorly that both the groom's and bride's families feel cheated—his family complains he left things unfinished, while her family accuses him of deception. The whole community hears about it, and the affair spreads as a common joke. From this vivid scene of public humiliation, the phrase came to describe anything that circulates and becomes a source of ridicule.
💡 Example Usage
他酒后失态大闹宴会，此事很快传为笑柄。
He made a fool of himself at the banquet after drinking, and the incident quickly became a laughingstock.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 传为笑柄
- Pinyin: chuán wéi xiào bǐng
- Literal Translation: spread, as, laughing, stock
- Category: Status
- Characters: 4