📖 Meaning
Describes a state of extreme fear and alarm. Literally, one's hair stands on end and one's bones feel chilled to the core. It is used when someone is deeply terrified or horrified by something they hear, see, or experience.
📜 Origin Story
This phrase originates from the Ming dynasty vernacular short-story collection 'Stories to Awaken the World' (醒世恒言) by Feng Menglong, in the tale 'Three Filial Brothers Yield Their Inheritance to Gain Renown.' A character named Xu Wu recounts events so vividly and startlingly that his listeners are struck with horror—their hair standing on end and their bones turning cold. The modern writer Mao Dun also employed this idiom in his short story 'New Year,' where a laugh heard by the character Old Zhao leaves him terrified. The expression has since become a common way to describe being chilled to the bone with fright.
💡 Example Usage
听完那个鬼故事，他毛骨耸然，整夜无法入睡。
After hearing that ghost story, he was chilled to the bone with fear and could not sleep all night.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 毛骨耸然
- Pinyin: máo gǔ sǒng rán
- Literal Translation: hair, bone, stand on end, thus
- Category: Emotion
- Characters: 4