📖 Meaning
Unexpected calamities and disasters that strike out of nowhere. It describes troubles that come suddenly and without warning, beyond one's control or anticipation.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase traces back to the 'Book of the Later Han' (后汉书), in the biography of Zhou Rong of the Eastern Han dynasty. Zhou Rong, an upright official, warned that one might suddenly meet with unforeseen disaster ('飞祸') such that there would not even be proper burial arrangements. Over time the expression expanded into '飞灾横祸,' emphasizing the suddenness and arbitrariness of catastrophe striking an innocent person. It conveys the ancient awareness that fortune and disaster are unpredictable.
💡 Example Usage
他出门前还好好的，谁知竟遭此飞灾横祸。
He was perfectly fine when he left home—who could have known he would meet with such sudden, unexpected disaster?
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 飞灾横祸
- Pinyin: fēi zāi hèng huò
- Literal Translation: flying disaster, sudden misfortune
- Category: Condition
- Characters: 4