Chinese idiom · 成语
博闻强识
Meaning
Broad knowledge, strong memory; extensive learning.
Character by character
Origin and story
Classical teachingThe Liji's Quli I describes a cultivated person as broadly informed and able to remember, yet modest, and as devoted to good conduct without becoming slack. 博闻强识 appears within that ethical description.
The full context matters: memory and learning are praised together with humility and behavior, not as a display of superiority. Later biographies also use the expression to commend extensive knowledge and reliable recall. 识 is pronounced zhì in this idiom, meaning to remember or retain, rather than shí as in many everyday words about knowledge.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
这位导游博闻强识，连小巷里的老建筑都能讲得很清楚。
This guide is exceptionally knowledgeable and can clearly explain even the old buildings tucked away in side streets.
Praises wide learning and strong memory; 识 is read zhì.