📖 Meaning
From beginning to end; entirely and completely. It conveys thoroughness in covering the full span of something. It is a variant of 通前彻后.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from the Ming dynasty novel 《平妖传》(Ping Yao Zhuan), Chapter 11. In the passage, a character starting from the left wall presses down with his hand, going through all the written text from beginning to end, patting down thirteen sheets in total. The phrase thus describes covering or going through something thoroughly from start to finish.
💡 Example Usage
他把这本小说通前至后读了一遍，终于明白了作者的用意。
He read this novel from beginning to end, and finally understood the author's intention.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 通前至后
- Pinyin: tōng qián zhì hòu
- Literal Translation: connect, front, reach, back
- Category: Distance
- Characters: 4