📖 Meaning
Widespread slander can melt away a person's bones — a metaphor for how relentless rumors and malicious gossip can destroy a person's reputation and even their life. It speaks to the terrifying power of public opinion when it turns hostile, eroding truth until right and wrong become indistinguishable.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from a memorial written by Li Gang (李纲), a statesman and military commander of the Song Dynasty, in his 'Gong Ci Xie Biao' (《宫词谢表》). Li Gang was a loyal official who repeatedly faced slander and political attacks from rivals at court. In his memorial, he lamented that accumulated slander could melt bone, and that he could only hope for the light of justice to shine upon him like the midday sun. The line captures the helplessness of a virtuous person besieged by malicious rumors in a treacherous political environment.
💡 Example Usage
众毁销骨，他一生清白，却终究毁于流言。
Slander melts bone — he lived a life of integrity, yet was ultimately destroyed by rumors.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 众毁销骨
- Pinyin: zhòng huǐ xiāo gǔ
- Literal Translation: many, slander, melt, bone
- Category: Communication
- Characters: 4