📖 Meaning
Deeply worried and anxious about someone, unable to put them out of one's mind. It paints a vivid picture of care and longing felt in the pit of the stomach, as if concern were physically tugging at one's insides.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase comes from the Qing dynasty folk song anthology 《白雪遗音》, compiled around the early 19th century by Hua Guangsheng. It appears in the tune '从别后' (Since We Parted) under the 岭儿调 section, whose lyrics lament the pain of separation: '心儿里挂肚牵肠，废寝忘食' — the heart hangs from the belly and pulls at the intestines, so distraught that one forgets to eat and sleep. The idiom thus originated in vernacular love songs expressing the longing between parted lovers.
💡 Example Usage
孩子远赴他乡打拼，老母亲日夜挂肚牵肠，只盼他能平安归来。
With her son working far from home, the old mother worries about him day and night, longing only for his safe return.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 挂肚牵肠
- Pinyin: guà dù qiān cháng
- Literal Translation: hang, belly, pull, intestines
- Category: Emotion
- Characters: 4