杞人忧天qǐ rén yōu tiānto entertain groundless fears

1. 1.

   to entertain groundless fearsidiom

Figurative meaning

To entertain groundless fears.

Literal meaning

A person of Qi worries about the sky.

• 杞Qi, a Zhou Dynasty vassal state
• 人person
• 忧to worry
• 天sky

The story

In the state of Qi there was a man who worried that heaven and earth would collapse and fall, leaving his body nowhere to rest. He worried so much that he stopped sleeping and eating.

杞人忧天 can describe worries about something that is not likely to happen.

1. HSK 2

   明天不会下雨，你别杞人忧天了。

   Míngtiān bú huì xiàyǔ, nǐ bié qǐ rén yōu tiān le.

   It won't rain tomorrow; stop worrying for nothing.

2. HSK 3

   你已经准备好了，考试的事不用杞人忧天。

   Nǐ yǐjīng zhǔnbèi hǎo le, kǎoshì de shì búyòng qǐ rén yōu tiān.

   You are already prepared, so there is no need for groundless worries about the exam.

1. 
   Speaker A:

   我怕明天的考试太难。

   Wǒ pà míngtiān de kǎoshì tài nán.

   I'm afraid tomorrow's exam will be too hard.

2. 
   Speaker B:

   你复习了吗？

   Nǐ fùxí le ma?

   Did you review?

3. 
   Speaker A:

   我一直在复习。

   Wǒ yìzhí zài fùxí.

   I've been reviewing the whole time.

4. 
   Speaker B:

   那你别杞人忧天了。

   Nà nǐ bié qǐ rén yōu tiān le.

   Then stop worrying for nothing.

1. 1.What does 杞人忧天 mean?

   ATo entertain groundless fearsBTo look up at the skyCTo travel to Qi
2. 2.Which sentence uses 杞人忧天 correctly?

   A你别杞人忧天了。B今天的天气很杞人忧天。C我杞人忧天地吃饭。
3. 3.Which word fits best? 你已经准备好了，不用____。 (You are already prepared; no need to worry for nothing.)

   A杞人忧天B守株待兔C完璧归赵

• Free HSK 3 level testSee which HSK 3.0 level your vocabulary matches.
• Not on the HSK 3.0 syllabus word listEvery word at this level, with examples.
• HSK 3.0 guideHow the nine levels and three bands work.

Related idioms

• 坐井观天zuò jǐng guān tiānignorant and narrow-mindedNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus
• 盲人摸象máng rén mō xiàngunable to see the big pictureNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus
• 后顾之忧hòu gù zhī yōufears of trouble in the rear (idiom); family worries (obstructing freedom of action)HSK 7–9
• 得天独厚dé tiān dú hòublessed by heaven (idiom)HSK 7–9
• 深入人心shēn rù rén xīnto enter deeply into people's heartsHSK 7–9
• 人山人海rén shān rén hǎimultitude; vast crowdHSK 6

Browse every entry in the Chinese idioms dictionary.