xǐ'ěr​gōng​tīng

to listen with respectful attention

  • created sense approved 洗耳恭听/洗耳恭聽 · xǐ'ěr​gōng​tīng · to listen with respectful attention — "Initial import from upstream dictionary"

    洗耳恭听 / 洗耳恭聽

    xǐ'ěr​gōng​tīng

    to listen with respectful attention

    Literally "to wash one's ears and listen respectfully"; used as a polite expression to show one is paying close attention or as an invitation for someone else to speak.

    洗 (literal) → 洗 · xǐ · to wash 耳 (literal) → 耳 · ěr · ear 恭 (literal) → 恭 · gōng · respectful 听 (literal) → 听/聽 · tīng · to listen

    Changed: simplified, traditional, gloss, definition, pinyin, variant pinyin, variants, separable parts, decomposition

    created sense