The New Dictionary.
Search dictionary
Chinese/Dictionary entry

心猿意马

xīn yuán yì mǎdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
lit. heart like a frisky monkey, mind like a cantering horse (idiom) / fig. capricious (derog.) / to have ants in one's pants / hyperactive / adventurous and uncontrollable
Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-cf888b5b5a642144. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

心猿意馬 心猿意马 [xin1 yuan2 yi4 ma3] /lit. heart like a frisky monkey, mind like a cantering horse (idiom); fig. capricious (derog.)/to have ants in one's pants/hyperactive/adventurous and uncontrollable/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

Other forms in these source records: 心猿意馬

  • 心
    xīn

    heart / mind / intention / center / core / CL:顆|颗[kē],個|个[gè]

  • 猿
  • 意
    yì

    (bound form) idea / thought / meaning / sense / (bound form) intention / feeling / inclination / state of mind / (bound form) Italy (abbr. for 意大利[Yì dà lì])

  • 马
    mǎ

    horse / CL:匹[pǐ] / horse or cavalry piece in Chinese chess / knight in Western chess

    Mǎ

    surname Ma / abbr. for Malaysia 馬來西亞|马来西亚[Mǎ lái xī yà]

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.