弹指之间 tán zhǐ zhī jiān In the blink of an eye

Explanation

弹指：佛教语，二十念为一瞬，二十瞬为一弹指，形容时间极短。比喻时间非常短暂。

A snap of the fingers: Buddhist term, 20 thoughts make up a moment, 20 moments make up a snap of the fingers, describing a very short period of time. A metaphor for a very short time.

Origin Story

话说唐朝有个书生名叫李白，从小就聪颖过人，读书过目不忘。一日，他正埋头苦读，突然听到门外传来一阵喧闹声，好奇之下，他放下书本，推门而出。只见一群人围在一起，议论纷纷，原来是县令要选拔一名秀才去参加科举考试。李白心想，这可是个千载难逢的好机会，于是便上前报名参加考试。考试题目十分刁钻，众考生纷纷抓耳挠腮，绞尽脑汁也答不上来。而李白却胸有成竹，提笔疾书，顷刻间便完成了答卷。只见他眼神炯炯有神，嘴角挂着自信的微笑，那神态仿佛胜券在握。阅卷官看完李白的答卷后，不禁连连点头称赞，如此才思敏捷，实乃百年难遇。就这样，李白在弹指之间便考中了秀才，从此开始了他的仕途生涯。

huà shuō táng cháo yǒu gè shūshēng míng jiào lǐ bái, cóng xiǎo jiù cōngyǐng guò rén, dú shū guò mù bù wàng. yī rì, tā zhèng mái tóu kǔ dú, tūrán tīng dào mén wài chuán lái yī zhèn xuānnào shēng, hào qí zhī xià, tā fàng xià shū běn, tuī mén ér chū. zhǐ jiàn yī qún rén wéi zài yī qǐ, yìlùn fēnfēn, yuán lái shì xiàn lìng yào xuǎn bá yī míng xiù cái qù cān jiā kē jǔ kǎoshì. lǐ bái xiǎng xiàng, zhè kě shì gè qiānzǎi nánféng de hǎo jīhuì, yú shì biàn shàng qián bàomíng cān jiā kǎoshì. kǎoshì tímù shífēn diāo zuān, zhòng kǎoshēng fēnfēn zhuā ěr sǎi sāi, jiǎo jǐn nǎo zhī yě dá bù shàng lái. ér lǐ bái què xiōng yǒu chéng zhú, tí bǐ jí shū, qǐng kè jiān biàn wánchéng le dá juǎn. zhǐ jiàn tā yǎnshén jiǒng jiǒng yǒu shén, zuǐ jiǎo guà zhe zìxìn de wēixiào, nà shéntài fǎngfú shèng quàn zài wò. yuè juǎn guān kàn wán lǐ bái de dá juǎn hòu, bù jīn lián lián diǎn tóu chēng zàn, rúcǐ cái sī mǐn jié, shí nái bǎi nián nán yù. jiù zhè yàng, lǐ bái zài tán zhǐ zhī jiān biàn kǎo zhòng le xiù cái, cóng cǐ kāishǐ le tā de shìtú shēngyá.

It is said that in the Tang Dynasty, there was a scholar named Li Bai who was intelligent and extraordinary since childhood, able to memorize books at a glance. One day, while he was engrossed in his studies, he suddenly heard a commotion outside the door. Out of curiosity, he put down his book and opened the door. He saw a group of people gathered together, arguing animatedly. It turned out that the magistrate was going to select a talented scholar to participate in the imperial examination. Li Bai thought to himself, this is a rare opportunity, so he went forward to sign up for the exam. The exam questions were very tricky, and many candidates scratched their heads and racked their brains but couldn't find an answer. Li Bai, however, was confident, picked up his pen, and wrote quickly, finishing the exam paper in the blink of an eye. His eyes were shining, and a confident smile played on his lips. It seemed as if he was sure of his victory. After the examiner read Li Bai's exam paper, he couldn't help but nod repeatedly in praise. Such quick wit was truly a rare occurrence. In this way, Li Bai passed the examination for a scholar in the blink of an eye and began his career in government service.

Usage

表示时间短暂，常用作宾语。

biǎoshì shíjiān duǎnzàn, cháng yòng zuò bīnyǔ

It expresses that the time is short and is often used as the object.

Examples

• 事情发生得非常迅速，简直就是弹指之间。

  shìqíng fāshēng de fēicháng xùnsù, jiǎnzhí jiùshì tán zhǐ zhī jiān

  Things happened so fast, it was all done in the blink of an eye.

• 高手过招，胜负往往就在弹指之间。

  gāoshǒu guò zhāo, shèngfù wǎngwǎng jiù zài tán zhǐ zhī jiān

  In a match between experts, victory often comes down to the wire.

• 他十年寒窗苦读，终于在弹指之间金榜题名。

  tā shí nián hán chuāng kǔ dú, zōngyú zài tán zhǐ zhī jiān jīnbǎng tímíng

  After ten years of hard study, he finally succeeded in the blink of an eye.

Related Idioms

• 转瞬之间

• 一瞬间

Opposite Idioms

• 旷日持久

• 千秋万代