食指大动
shí zhǐ dà dòng
one’s appetite is roused; itching to eat
Character by character
食shí
index
index
指zhǐ
finger
finger
大dà
greatly
greatly
动dòng
move
move
Example
一进火锅店，闻到那股麻辣味，我就食指大动。
The moment I walk into a hotpot place and smell that numbing heat, I am itching to eat.
Tone: neutral.
Usage and origin
From 《左传》: a Zheng noble’s index finger twitched, a sign, he said, of a rare treat. When the duke left him out of the turtle soup, he dipped a finger in the pot and walked out: the origin of 染指 too.
Learn this in Lesson 218 · HSK 9+: 文人写吃 (Writers at the table)
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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