不翼而飞

不翼而飛

bùyì'érfēi

idiom HSK 7 #22,864

Meanings

1 to vanish without a trace; to disappear into thin air
2 to spread like wildfire (of news)

Characters

yet; but (literary)

Literally 'to fly without wings' — something disappears as if it flew away, despite having no wings.

Examples

我的钱包不翼而飞了。

Wǒ de qiánbāo bùyì'érfēi le.

My wallet vanished into thin air.

桌上的文件不翼而飞。

Zhuō shàng de wénjiàn bùyì'érfēi.

The documents on the desk disappeared without a trace.

消息不翼而飞，很快传遍了全城。

Xiāoxi bùyì'érfēi, hěn kuài chuánbiàn le quán chéng.

The news spread like wildfire and quickly reached the whole city.

Tips

usage

不翼而飞 has two opposite meanings depending on context: (1) something physical disappears mysteriously (wallet, money, documents), and (2) news/information spreads rapidly everywhere. Context makes it clear which meaning is intended — things vanish, but news flies.

Stroke Order

不 bù

翼 yì

而 ér

飞 fēi