言外之意 yán wài zhī yì

DEFINITIONS

  1. unspoken implication (idiom)
  2. the actual meaning of what was said

CHARACTERS

言 yán
HSK 4
words, speech; speak, say
外 wài
HSK 2
out, outside, external; foreign
之 zhī
HSK 4
marks preceding phrase as modifier of following phrase; it, him her, them; go to
意 yì
HSK 2
thought, idea, opinion; think