📖 Meaning
To treat someone as a stranger one passes on the road. This idiom describes a state of extreme estrangement between people who were once close — family members or dear friends who have become so distant that they act as if they have never met.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from Ling Mengchu's 'Slapping the Table in Amazement, First Collection' (初刻拍案惊奇), Volume 13, written during the Ming Dynasty. The passage laments how people can drift so far apart that they casually regard each other as strangers on the road, or even as bitter enemies. The image of 'passersby on the road' underscores the complete loss of emotional connection and mutual recognition between those who once shared a bond.
💡 Example Usage
兄弟俩因为财产纠纷，如今已视同路人。
The two brothers, due to a property dispute, now treat each other as complete strangers.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 视同路人
- Pinyin: shì tóng lù rén
- Literal Translation: regard, as, road, stranger
- Category: Attitude
- Characters: 4