目不转睛

• Pinyin: mù bù zhuǎn jīng
• Hanzi breakdown: 目 = eye (pictograph); 不 = negation; 转 = 车(wheel) + 专(turn, phonetic) — to rotate; 睛 = 目(eye) + 青(clear/blue, phonetic) — the pupil of the eye

Meaning

To stare fixedly without blinking; to gaze intently at something without looking away.

A four-character idiom (成语) describing complete visual absorption in something. Used to convey intense concentration, fascination, or vigilance. Common in literary descriptions and everyday speech.

Examples

1. 观众们目不转睛地盯着舞台，生怕错过演员的每一个细微表情。 The audience stared at the stage without taking their eyes off it, afraid of missing even the slightest expression from the actors.
2. 她目不转睛地注视着屏幕上滚动的数据，试图从中找出异常的规律。 She stared unblinkingly at the scrolling data on the screen, trying to detect a pattern behind the anomalies.
3. 孩子目不转睛地看着魔术师的双手，想要找出藏在戏法背后的秘密。 The child watched the magician’s hands without looking away, trying to uncover the secret behind the trick.

Usage Guide

Context: literary description, everyday speech, narrative writing

Tone: vivid/descriptive

Do Say

• 他目不转睛地凝视着远处的山峰，心中涌起一股难以言表的震撼与敬畏。(He gazed fixedly at the distant mountain peaks, a sense of awe and wonder beyond words welling up within him.)
• 两位棋手在对弈时均目不转睛，场面凝重而充满张力。(Both players stared unblinkingly at the board during the match, the atmosphere tense and charged with concentration.)

Don't Say

• 把'目不转睛'用于描述心不在焉的注视 (目不转睛 specifically implies intense, absorbed attention — it cannot describe a blank or distracted stare)

Origin & History

目(eye) + 不(not) + 转(turn/move) + 睛(eyeball/pupil). Literally 'eyes not turning their pupils' — describing a fixed, unblinking gaze.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal