Chinese idiom · 成语
兴师动众
Meaning
To mobilize troops and masses; to make a big fuss.
Character by character
Origin and story
military sayingThe Li Shi chapter of the Wuzi (吳子) uses these words in a discussion of inspiring soldiers. It imagines issuing orders that people welcome and mobilizing forces that people are willing to fight in. Here the phrase means raising an army and setting many people in motion; it is not yet a complaint that the effort is unnecessary.
Later everyday usage takes that large military scale as a comparison. In chapter 47 of Honglou Meng, for example, the wording criticizes making a disproportionate response after suffering a setback. The modern idiom can simply describe mobilizing many people, but often questions whether so much labor, disruption, or ceremony is justified by the task.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
只是换个灯泡，不用兴师动众把全家都叫来。
It's only changing a light bulb—there's no need to summon the whole family.
Often used with 不用 or 何必 to criticize disproportionate mobilization.