Chinese idiom · 成语
杞人忧天
Meaning
To worry needlessly about impossible things; groundless fears.
Character by character
Origin and story
Philosophical fableIn Tianrui (天瑞) of Liezi (列子), a man from Qi fears that heaven and earth will collapse, leaving him nowhere to exist. He becomes unable to eat or sleep. Someone tries to reassure him, describing the sky as accumulated qi and the earth as packed masses of material. The man raises further fears about the sun, moon, and stars before finally feeling relieved.
These explanations belong to the text’s ancient cosmology, not modern astronomy. The familiar idiom focuses on needless anxiety unsupported by evidence. It should not be used to dismiss a well-founded risk merely because it concerns the future.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
演示还没开始，我就担心所有人都会讨厌它，想想真有点杞人忧天。
The presentation hasn’t even started, and I’m already afraid everyone will hate it. I’m probably worrying without good reason.
Self-reflective here; distinguish unsupported fears from sensible preparation.