📖 Meaning
This idiom describes something passed down through generations from the same bloodline, school, or tradition. It indicates that certain ideas, behaviors, or doctrines share a continuous inheritable relationship across time.
📜 Origin Story
This phrase appears in Lu Xun's essay collection '华盖集续编' (Supplement to the Unfortunate Collection), in the piece '无花的蔷薇之三' (Rose Without Flowers, Part Three). Lu Xun used it to criticize Beijing's rumor-mongering newspapers, which he said had carried on in the same tradition since Yuan Shikai's attempt to restore the monarchy, Zhang Xun's brief restoration of the Qing emperor, and Zhang Shizhao's campaign to 'rectify academic atmosphere.' The idiom highlights how harmful practices and attitudes can be inherited and perpetuated across successive eras.
💡 Example Usage
这门技艺在家族中一脉相传，至今已有百年历史。
This craft has been passed down through the family for generations, with a history spanning over a century.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 一脉相传
- Pinyin: yī mài xiāng chuán
- Literal Translation: one, lineage, mutually, transmit
- Category: Knowledge
- Characters: 4