秀色可餐 xiù sè kě cān Beautiful scenery is delicious

Explanation

形容女子容貌美丽，如同佳肴般令人喜爱；也用来形容景色秀丽，令人赏心悦目。

Describes a woman's beauty as being so attractive as to be like a delicious meal; also used to describe a beautiful landscape.

Origin Story

话说唐朝时期，一位名叫李白的诗人游览山水名胜，途中偶遇一位绝色女子，其容颜之美，令人惊叹不已。女子身着素衣，长发飘飘，宛若仙子下凡。李白被她的美貌所吸引，一时之间竟忘了吟诗作赋，只觉眼前一亮，心中赞叹：这秀色，真是令人食指大动，如同人间美味般可口。此后，李白便将这女子之美，写入诗篇之中，流传于世。

huà shuō táng cháo shí qī, yī wèi míng jiào lǐ bái de shī rén yóu lǎn shān shuǐ míng shèng, tú zhōng ǒu yù yī wèi jué sè nǚ zǐ, qí róng yán zhī měi, lìng rén jīng tàn bù yǐ. nǚ zǐ shēn zhuó sù yī, cháng fà piāo piāo, wǎn ruò xiān zǐ xià fán. lǐ bái bèi tā de měi mào suǒ xī yǐn, yī shí zhī jiān jìng wàng le yín shī zuò fù, zhǐ jué yǎn qián yī liàng, xīn zhōng zàn tàn: zhè xiù sè, zhēn shì lìng rén shí zhǐ dà dòng, rú tóng rén jiān měi wèi bān kě kǒu. cǐ hòu, lǐ bái biàn jiāng zhè nǚ zǐ zhī měi, xiě rù shī piān zhī zhōng, liú chuán yú shì.

In the Tang Dynasty, a poet named Li Bai was touring famous landscapes. Along the way, he met a stunningly beautiful woman. Her beauty was breathtaking. The woman was dressed in simple clothes, her long hair flowing in the wind, like a fairy. Li Bai was so captivated by her beauty that he forgot to write poetry for a moment. He was only entranced by her beauty, and in his heart he admired her: This beauty is truly irresistible, like a delicious dish. Later, Li Bai wrote this beauty into his poems, which were then passed down through generations.

Usage

常用来形容女子容貌美丽，或景物秀丽。

cháng yòng lái xíngróng nǚ zǐ róng mào měilì, huò jǐng wù xiù lì

Often used to describe a woman's beauty, or the beauty of a landscape.

Examples

• 西湖山水，秀色可餐。

  xī hú shān shuǐ, xiù sè kě cān

  The scenery of West Lake is breathtaking.

• 这姑娘长得真漂亮，真是秀色可餐！

  zhè gū niang zhǎng de zhēn piàoliang, zhēn shì xiù sè kě cān

  This girl is so beautiful, simply delicious!

Related Idioms

• 秀外慧中

• 国色天香

Opposite Idioms

• 其貌不扬

• 面目可憎