📖 Meaning
When many mosquitoes gather together, their buzzing sounds like thunder. It is a metaphor for how numerous slanderers spreading rumors can cause great harm to a person. The idiom warns that accumulated petty attacks can become devastating.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from the 'Book of Han' (汉书), specifically in the biography of Prince Jing of Zhongshan (中山靖王刘胜), written during the Eastern Han dynasty by Ban Gu. Prince Jing lamented to Emperor Wu of Han that court officials were spreading slanderous rumors about him, comparing the accumulation of malicious gossip to mosquitoes whose collective buzzing becomes as loud as thunder. The phrase '众煦漂山，聚蚊成雷' illustrated how many small voices united could cause enormous damage. It was later quoted in the 'History of the Southern Dynasties' (南史) in the biography of Prince Ji of Wuling.
💡 Example Usage
流言蜚语一旦聚蚊成雷，足以毁掉一个人的声誉。
Once rumors and gossip gather like mosquitoes into thunder, they are enough to destroy a person's reputation.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 聚蚊成雷
- Pinyin: jù wén chéng léi
- Literal Translation: gather, mosquitoes, become, thunder
- Category: Communication
- Characters: 4