📖 Meaning
A variant of 融会贯通, meaning to thoroughly integrate and synthesize knowledge from various fields into a comprehensive understanding. It describes the process of fusing disparate ideas together so that one grasps them deeply and sees the connections between them. The term emphasizes achieving mastery through systematic synthesis.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase originates from the preface to the Shiyao Leichao (史要类钞), a historical compendium written during the Ming dynasty by the scholar Gao Qi (高启). In the preface, Gao Qi lamented that earlier historical works often failed to present underlying principles completely or record actual events in detail, leaving readers unable to integrate and synthesize the material. He argued that without such thorough integration, one could not properly distinguish similarities and differences or evaluate gains and losses. The idiom thus carries the scholarly ideal of fusing all strands of learning into a unified, penetrating understanding.
💡 Example Usage
读书须博览群书，方能淹会贯通，明其大义。
One must read widely in order to thoroughly synthesize all knowledge and grasp the essential meaning.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 淹会贯通
- Pinyin: yān huì guàn tōng
- Literal Translation: soak, assemble, thread through, connect
- Category: Knowledge
- Characters: 4