慕名而来
mù míng ér lái
to come because of something’s or someone’s fame
Character by character
慕mù
admire
admire
名míng
name
name
而ér
and
and
来lái
come
come
Example
这家小饭馆连招牌都没有，可每天都有人慕名而来。
This little restaurant does not even have a sign, yet people come every day because they have heard of it.
Tone: neutral.
Usage and origin
The subject is the visitors, and the famous place, person or dish is usually named nearby: 很多游客慕名而来. A more formal variant is 慕名前来.
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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