一鸣惊人

yī míng jīng rén

to amaze everyone at the first attempt

Character by character

一yī
one

鸣míng
cry

惊jīng
startle

人rén
people

这位年轻选手一鸣惊人，拿了冠军。

This young player stunned everyone by winning the title.

Tone: positive (praise).

From the Records of the Grand Historian: King Wei of Qi likened himself to a silent bird that, once it sang, would startle all.

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