📖 Meaning
Originally referred to mobilizing a large military force for war. In modern usage it means deploying a great number of people to accomplish some task, often implying the effort is disproportionate to the actual need. It is synonymous with the more common idiom 兴师动众.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom has no single definitive literary source but stems from traditional military language used since antiquity. The two verbs 兴 (to raise) and 动 (to stir or move) paired with 兵 (troops) and 众 (the masses) describe the act of assembling both soldiers and civilian labor on a grand scale. Throughout Chinese history, such large-scale mobilization was a grave matter for any ruler, as it consumed vast resources and could destabilize the state. Over time the phrase broadened from purely military contexts to describe any undertaking that involves inconveniencing large numbers of people.
💡 Example Usage
这点小事不必兴兵动众，我一个人就能解决。
There's no need to mobilize so many people for such a trivial matter—I can handle it alone.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 兴兵动众
- Pinyin: xīng bīng dòng zhòng
- Literal Translation: raise, troops, move, masses
- Category: Action
- Characters: 4