天馬行空

Chinese

		fine horse; serow	to go; to do; capable to go; to do; capable; all right; competent; OK; to travel; temporary; to walk; will do; behaviour; conduct; a row; profession; professional	emptied; leisure; air emptied; leisure; air; sky; empty; in vain
trad. (天馬行空)		天馬	行	空
simp. (天马行空)		天马	行	空
Literally: “a heavenly steed soaring across the skies”.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): tiānmǎxíngkōng

  (Zhuyin): ㄊㄧㄢ ㄇㄚˇ ㄒㄧㄥˊ ㄎㄨㄥ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): tin¹ maa⁵ hang⁴ hung¹

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: tiānmǎxíngkōng
    • Zhuyin: ㄊㄧㄢ ㄇㄚˇ ㄒㄧㄥˊ ㄎㄨㄥ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: tianmǎsíngkong
    • Wade–Giles: tʻien¹-ma³-hsing²-kʻung¹
    • Yale: tyān-mǎ-syíng-kūng
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: tianmaashyngkong
    • Palladius: тяньмасинкун (tjanʹmasinkun)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕiŋ³⁵ kʰʊŋ⁵⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: tin¹ maa⁵ hang⁴ hung¹
    • Yale: tīn máh hàhng hūng
    • Cantonese Pinyin: tin¹ maa⁵ hang⁴ hung¹
    • Guangdong Romanization: tin¹ ma⁵ heng⁴ hung¹
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tʰiːn⁵⁵ maː¹³ hɐŋ²¹ hʊŋ⁵⁵/

Idiom

天馬行空

1. (figurative, of literary composition, life, etc.) powerful and unrestrained in style; bold and imaginative; abounding with novel ideas

   • 沒有什麼能夠阻擋　你對自由的嚮往　天馬行空的生涯　你的心了無牽掛 [MSC, trad.]
     没有什么能够阻挡　你对自由的向往　天马行空的生涯　你的心了无牵挂 [MSC, simp.]

     From: 2002, 許巍 (also the lyricist), 《藍蓮花》 (The Blue Lotus)

     méiyǒu shénme nénggòu zǔdǎng, nǐ duì zìyóu de xiàngwǎng, tiānmǎxíngkōng de shēngyá, nǐ de xīn liǎowúqiānguà [Pinyin]

     Nothing could ever stand,
     Between you and the free land;
     In a life of laissez-aller,
     All your worries were blown away.

2. (figurative) progressing swiftly; unrestricted and developing rapidly
3. (figurative, derogatory) speaking in a roundabout, irrelevant or exaggerated way; empty and impracticable talk