📖 Meaning
Bullets fall like rain and guns stand thick as a forest. It describes an intensely fierce battle with heavy gunfire and dense combat. The idiom vividly conveys the extreme danger and ferocity of warfare.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase originates from the Qing dynasty dramatic work '皖江血·拒敌' by Sun Yulin. In the scene, the playwright depicts a desperate defense of a river city under overwhelming enemy assault, where bullets rain down and rifles form an impenetrable forest. The line emphasizes both the ferocity of the combat and the resolve of those resisting. It later became a common literary expression for describing scenes of intense, large-scale warfare in modern Chinese writing.
💡 Example Usage
战士们在弹雨枪林中奋勇冲锋，毫不退缩。
The soldiers charged bravely through the hail of bullets and forest of guns, never faltering for a moment.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 弹雨枪林
- Pinyin: dàn yǔ qiāng lín
- Literal Translation: bullets, rain, guns, forest
- Category: Condition
- Characters: 4