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一窝蜂

一窩蜂
yīwōfēng
idiom #38,188

Meanings

  1. 1 a whole hive of bees
  2. 2 in a swarm; all at once, chaotically
  3. 3 in droves; en masse

Examples

下课铃一响，学生们一窝蜂地跑出教室。
Xiàkè líng yī xiǎng, xuéshēngmen yīwōfēng de pǎochū jiàoshì.
The bell rang and the students swarmed out of the classroom.
股票一上涨，大家一窝蜂地去买。
Gǔpiào yī shàngzhǎng, dàjiā yīwōfēng de qù mǎi.
Once the stock went up, everyone rushed in to buy.
别一窝蜂地都挤在一起。
Bié yīwōfēng de dōu jǐ zài yīqǐ.
Don't all pile in at once.

Tips

history
Already in 《西游记》第28回: Wu Cheng'en describes monster underlings attacking the monk 'like a whole hive of bees' ('就是一窝蜂，齐齐拥上'). The image stuck.
usage
Works adverbially: 一窝蜂地 + VERB. Carries a flavor of disorderly, mindless rushing rather than organized action.

Stroke Order

一 yī
窝 wō
蜂 fēng