流连忘返
liú lián wàng fǎn
to enjoy oneself so much one forgets to leave
Character by character
流liú
drift
drift
连lián
linger
linger
忘wàng
forget
forget
返fǎn
return
return
Example
杭州的西湖风光迷人，让很多游客流连忘返。
West Lake in Hangzhou is so enchanting that many visitors cannot bring themselves to leave.
Tone: positive (praise).
Usage and origin
Usually 让／令人流连忘返, said of beautiful places, lively streets or good company. In 《孟子》 it was a warning about kings who went off on pleasure trips and forgot to come back; today it is pure praise.
Learn this in Lesson 26 · HSK 5: 外国游客来了 (China Travel: the visitors return)
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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