📖 Meaning
Literally 'one meeting in a thousand years.' It describes an extremely rare, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that is almost impossible to come by again. The idiom emphasizes the preciousness and fleeting nature of such a chance.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from Wang Bao's 'Eulogy on the Sage Lord Obtaining a Worthy Minister' (《圣主得贤臣颂》) during the Western Han dynasty. Wang Bao wrote that when a wise ruler and a capable minister encounter each other, it is like 'a meeting that happens once in a thousand years,' and their mutual understanding leaves no room for doubt. The phrase was used to highlight the extraordinary rarity of a perfect match between a sovereign and a talented advisor. Over time, it broadened to describe any exceptionally rare opportunity in life.
💡 Example Usage
这次出国深造的机会真是千载一会，你千万要把握住。
This opportunity to study abroad is truly a once-in-a-millennium chance — you must seize it.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 千载一会
- Pinyin: qiān zǎi yī huì
- Literal Translation: thousand, year, one, meeting
- Category: Condition
- Characters: 4