刮目相看

guāmù-xiāngkàn

idiom #12,237

Meanings

1 to look at sb with new eyes
2 to have a whole new level of respect for sb

Characters

to scrape; to wipe

mutually; each other

to look; to see

Literally: 'scrape eyes and look at each other' — wipe your eyes clean to see someone anew

Examples

他的进步让所有人刮目相看。

Tā de jìnbù ràng suǒyǒurén guāmùxiāngkàn.

His progress made everyone look at him with new eyes.

这次比赛的成绩令人刮目相看。

Zhècì bǐsài de chéngjì lìngrén guāmùxiāngkàn.

The results of this competition were impressively eye-opening.

Tips

history

From the Three Kingdoms era: general Lü Meng (吕蒙) was an uneducated soldier who studied hard. When his colleague Lü Su saw his transformation, Lü Meng said: 'A scholar who has been away three days must be looked at with fresh eyes' (士别三日，当刮目相待).

Stroke Order

刮 guā

目 mù

相 xiāng

看 kàn