刮目相看
guā mù xiāng kàn
to see someone in a new light
Character by character
刮guā
rub
rub
目mù
eyes
eyes
相xiāng
at someone
at someone
看kàn
look
look
Example
他的进步让大家刮目相看。
His progress made everyone look at him with new respect.
Tone: positive (praise).
Usage and origin
From the Three Kingdoms: after three days apart, look at a man with fresh eyes.
Learn this in Lesson 5 · HSK 5: 八大菜系 (The eight great cuisines)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
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