不胫而走

Pronunciation: bù jìng ér zǒu Literal meaning: Without shins yet runs

Origin & Usage

Kong Rong, urging a friend's release, wrote that pearls and jade come to a man without having legs (无胫) because people want them. The four-character form keeps the paradox: to travel (走) without (不) shins (胫). What it describes is movement that needs no mechanism because the thing is being carried by everyone who touches it. Rumours and songs, and now anything that has gone round the internet without a campaign behind it.

Examples

English: "The rumor spread throughout the organization without any official announcement"

Chinese: 谣言在没有任何官方宣布的情况下传遍了整个组织