倾城而出
qīng chéng ér chū
the whole town turns out
Character by character
倾qīng
empty
empty
城chéng
city
city
而ér
and
and
出chū
go out
go out
Example
国庆节晚上江边放烟花，市民倾城而出，桥上挤满了人。
On National Day evening there were fireworks by the river; the whole city turned out and the bridges were packed.
Tone: neutral.
Usage and origin
倾 is to tip out or empty, so 倾城 is the whole city. Used for a huge turnout to watch or welcome something: a parade, a festival, a team coming home. Not to be confused with 倾城 in 倾国倾城 (lesson 6-18), a beauty who could bring a city down.
Learn this in Lesson 146 · HSK 7–9: 马拉松热 (Marathon fever)
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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