刮目相看
刮目相看 (guā mù xiāng kàn) literally means “scrape eyes look anew” and expresses “reassess someone who has improved”. This idiom is used when describing situations involving wisdom and learning.
Also searched as: gua mu xiang kan, gua mu xiang kan,刮目相看 meaning, 刮目相看 in english
Reassess someone who has improved
Pronunciation: guā mù xiāng kàn Literal meaning: Scrape eyes look anew
Origin & Usage
Lü Meng was a Wu general dismissed as unlettered muscle until his sovereign told him to read. When Lu Su next passed through and talked strategy with him, he was astonished, and Lü Meng answered with the line that became the idiom: 士别三日，即更刮目相待 — when a man has been apart three days, you must scrape (刮) your eyes (目) and look (看) at him afresh. Pei Songzhi's commentary to the Records of the Three Kingdoms preserves it, quoting the Jiangbiao Zhuan. What it asks for is the effort of dropping an assessment that has gone stale, and it is used of people who have been underestimated.
Examples
English: "After her breakthrough performance, critics had to reassess her artistic abilities"
Chinese: 在她的突破性表演之后，评论家们不得不重新评估她的艺术才能
Related Chinese Idioms
Similar idioms about wisdom & learning
刮骨疗毒
guā gǔ liáo dú
Radical problem-solving
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一叶障目
yī yè zhàng mù
Miss big picture
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耳濡目染
ěr rú mù rǎn
Learning unconsciously through constant exposure
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耳目一新
ěr mù yī xīn
A refreshing new experience
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目不转睛
mù bù zhuǎn jīng
Focus intently
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目无全牛
mù wú quán niú
Achieve instinctive mastery
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目不暇给
mù bù xiá jǐ
Too much to take in
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鱼目混珠
yú mù hùn zhū
Passing fakes as genuine
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does 刮目相看 mean in English?
刮目相看 (guā mù xiāng kàn) literally translates to “Scrape eyes look anew” and is used to express “Reassess someone who has improved”. This Chinese idiom belongs to the Wisdom & Learning category.
When is 刮目相看 used?
Situation: After her breakthrough performance, critics had to reassess her artistic abilities
What is the pinyin for 刮目相看?
The pinyin pronunciation for 刮目相看 is “guā mù xiāng kàn”.