Chinese word

众所周知

Pronunciation

Pinyinzhòng suǒ zhōu zhī

Meaning

  • idiomas everyone knows

Example

在校园里，众所周知他很受欢迎。zài xiào yuán lǐ zhòng suǒ zhōu zhī tā hěn shòu huān yíng

On campus, as everyone knows, he is very popular.

Illustration for 众所周知 (as everyone knows)

More examples

在公司里，众所周知的事实是他工作非常认真。zài gōng sī lǐ zhòng suǒ zhōu zhī de shì shí shì tā gōng zuò fēi cháng rèn zhēn

At the company, the well-known fact is that he works very hard.

Core concept

A widely known point used as the background for what follows.

Common phrases

  • 众所周知的事实zhòng suǒ zhōu zhī de shì shí

    well-known fact

  • 众所周知的观点zhòng suǒ zhōu zhī de guān diǎn

    well-known opinion

  • 众所周知的现象zhòng suǒ zhōu zhī de xiàn xiàng

    well-known phenomenon

Similar words

家喻户晓jiā yù hù xiǎo: Describes knowledge so widespread that it has reached homes throughout the community.
人尽皆知rén jǐn jiē zhī: States that a fact is known by all the people in a group.

Definition in Chinese

众所周知表示某事为大多数人所知，通常用来引出无需多加说明的前提或背景，常位于句首或插入句中。zhòng suǒ zhōu zhī biǎo shì mǒu shì wèi dà duō shù rén suǒ zhī tōng cháng yòng lái yǐn chū wú xū duō jiā shuō míng de qián tí huò bèi jǐng cháng wèi yú jù shǒu huò chā rù jù zhōng

Word origin

The idiom joins 众 (zhòng, "many people") with 所 (suǒ, "that which"), 周 (zhōu, "all around"), and 知 (zhī, "know") to picture knowledge spreading through the whole community.

Usage tips

  • Casual conversation often uses simpler wording, while this idiom fits presentations, explanations, and written prose.

Other meanings

  • needless to sayidiom

Opposites

Word lists with this word