📖 Meaning
Describes a place filled with an enormous, dense crowd of people. The sheer number of people makes the scene look like mountains of people and a sea of humanity stretching as far as the eye can see.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom appears in classical Chinese literature to vividly depict overwhelmingly large gatherings. The imagery of turning people into mountains and seas emphasizes both the height and breadth of a crowd. While no single definitive source text is universally cited, the expression grew from folk poetic conventions in the Ming and Qing dynasties and became standardized in modern Chinese idiom collections.
💡 Example Usage
国庆节那天，天安门广场前人山人海，热闹非凡。
On National Day, the square in front of Tiananmen was absolutely packed with an enormous crowd, and the atmosphere was incredibly lively.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 人山人海
- Pinyin: rén shān rén hǎi
- Literal Translation: people mountain people sea
- Category: Condition
- Characters: 4