📖 Meaning
Describes a state of restlessness and anxiety, where one's heart pounds nervously and one cannot feel calm. It conveys both physical unease and mental worry, often in anticipation of uncertain news or outcomes.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom traces back to the ancient Chinese Classic of Poetry (《诗经·小雅·正月》), where the line '忧心忡忡' expresses deep anxiety. The specific compound '忐忑' appears in later texts as an onomatopoeic rendering of a pounding heart, with '忐' (upward beat) and '忑' (downward beat) mimicking the rhythm of an uneasy pulse. The full phrase '忐忑不安' became standard in vernacular literature from the Ming and Qing dynasties onward.
💡 Example Usage
考试成绩还没公布，她心里忐忑不安，整晚都睡不着觉。
The exam results hadn't been released yet, and she felt so uneasy that she couldn't sleep all night.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 忐忑不安
- Pinyin: tǎn tè bù ān
- Literal Translation: pounding heart, not at peace
- Category: Emotion
- Characters: 4