📖 Meaning
To have no news or information at all; to vanish without a trace leaving no word behind. It describes a situation where someone or something has disappeared and no communication has been received.
📜 Origin Story
This phrase originates from 'Ye Huo Bian' (Miscellaneous Records) by Shen Defu of the Ming Dynasty. The text mentions someone suspected of traveling by sea, whose whereabouts were tracked along the coastal regions of Fujian and Guangdong, yet no news or trace could be found. The idiom conveys the total absence of any communication or sign.
💡 Example Usage
他离家出走后便杳无消息，家人四处寻找也无从得知下落。
After running away from home, he vanished without a trace, and despite searching everywhere, his family could not learn of his whereabouts.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 杳无消息
- Pinyin: yǎo wú xiāo xī
- Literal Translation: 杳, dim, distant, without, message, news
- Category: Communication
- Characters: 4