📖 Meaning
A metaphor for outstanding literary or writing talent. It describes prose or poetry so brilliant that the words seem to bloom like flowers. Used to praise someone's exceptional ability with the pen.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom comes from the Five Dynasties work "Kaiyuan Tianbao Yishi" (Romance of the Kaiyuan and Tianfu Eras) by Wang Renyu. It records that Li Bai, the great Tang dynasty poet known as Li Taibao, dreamed in his youth that flowers blossomed from the tip of the brush he used. After this dream, his poetic talent became overflowing and surpassing, and his fame spread throughout the land. The image of a flowering brush thus became a symbol of extraordinary literary gift.
💡 Example Usage
这位作家凭借生花妙笔，把平凡的小镇生活写成了一部动人的长篇小说。
With his brilliant pen, the writer turned the ordinary life of a small town into a moving novel.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 生花妙笔
- Pinyin: shēng huā miào bǐ
- Literal Translation: grow, flower, wonderful, brush
- Category: Skill
- Characters: 4