📖 Meaning
The night watch has grown late and the night is utterly still. It describes a very late hour when the surroundings are enveloped in complete silence and tranquility.
📜 Origin Story
This phrase traces back to the Han dynasty poet Cai Yan (蔡琰) and her work 'Eighteen Songs of a Nomad Flute' (胡笳十八拍), specifically the fourteenth song. Cai Yan, a woman poet of the Eastern Han period, was captured by the Xiongnu nomads and lived among them for many years. In the poem she laments the vast mountains and wide lands that separate her from loved ones, and in the deep stillness of the night she dreams of their reunion.
💡 Example Usage
更深夜静，唯有窗外虫鸣声声入耳。
In the deep stillness of the night, only the chirping of insects outside the window reached one's ears.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 更深夜静
- Pinyin: gēng shēn yè jìng
- Literal Translation: night watch deep, night quiet
- Category: Condition
- Characters: 4