口若懸河

Chinese

	mouth; (a measure word, for people, livestock or utensils)	to seem; like; as to seem; like; as; if
trad. (口若懸河)	口	若	懸河
simp. (口若悬河)	口	若	悬河
Literally: “mouth like a waterfall”.

Etymology

Considered an allusion from Shishuo Xinyu:

王太尉云：「郭子玄語議如懸河寫水，注而不竭。」 [Literary Chinese, trad.]

王太尉云：「郭子玄语议如悬河写水，注而不竭。」 [Literary Chinese, simp.]

From: Liu Yiqing (editor), A New Account of the Tales of the World, 5^th century CE

Wáng tàiwèi yún: “Guō Zǐxuán yǔyì rú xuánhé xiè shuǐ, zhù ér bù jié.” [Pinyin]

The grand marshal, Wang Yen, said, “When Kuo Hsiang converses, it's as if he were tilting the Yellow River to drain its waters; it pours and pours, but is never exhausted.”

Then the four-character chengyu-like form first attested in Han Yu's poem:

安能以此上論列，願借辯口如懸河。 [Literary Chinese, trad.]

安能以此上论列，愿借辩口如悬河。 [Literary Chinese, simp.]

From: 811, Han Yu (韓愈),《石鼓歌》, translated by Lin Tongqi（林同奇）

Ānnéng yǐ cǐ shàng lùnliè, yuàn jiè biànkǒu rú xuánhé. [Pinyin]

How, then, could my above points be regained?
Fain would I loose my torrential eloquence (to bring these Stone Drums all into Imperial Academy).

Notes: 如 (rú) can always replace 若 (ruò), but nowadays the latter is more used in this.

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Pinyin): kǒuruòxuánhé

(Zhuyin): ㄎㄡˇ ㄖㄨㄛˋ ㄒㄩㄢˊ ㄏㄜˊ
Cantonese (Jyutping): hau² joek⁶ jyun⁴ ho⁴

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: kǒuruòxuánhé
  - Zhuyin: ㄎㄡˇ ㄖㄨㄛˋ ㄒㄩㄢˊ ㄏㄜˊ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: kǒuruòsyuánhé
  - Wade–Giles: kʻou³-jo⁴-hsüan²-ho²
  - Yale: kǒu-rwò-sywán-hé
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: koouruohshyuanher
  - Palladius: коужосюаньхэ (koužosjuanʹxɛ)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /kʰoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʐu̯ɔ⁵¹ ɕy̯ɛn³⁵ xɤ³⁵/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
  - Jyutping: hau² joek⁶ jyun⁴ ho⁴
  - Yale: háu yeuhk yùhn hòh
  - Cantonese Pinyin: hau² joek⁹ jyn⁴ ho⁴
  - Guangdong Romanization: heo² yêg⁶ yun⁴ ho⁴
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /hɐu̯³⁵ jœːk̚² jyːn²¹ hɔː²¹/

Idiom

口若懸河

eloquent; glib; voluble; having the gift of the gab