jī鸡chickenquǎn犬dogbù不notníng宁peace
Even chickens and dogs aren't at peace — total disturbance.
Literal meaning
chicken (鸡) — dog (犬) — not (不) — peace (宁)
Origin
A traditional phrase capturing the kind of chaos that disturbs even the household animals — a rural-life metric for upheaval. Used in classical novels and modern speech for situations where the disorder is impossible to ignore.
Examples
Hái孩zi子men们nào闹de得jiā家lǐ里jī鸡quǎn犬bù不níng宁。
The kids stirred the house up to the point even the animals had no peace.
Bān搬jiā家nà那tiān天，zhěng整dòng栋lóu楼jī鸡quǎn犬bù不níng宁。
Moving day — the whole building was in uproar.
Usage & nuances
Slightly dramatic. Used for chaos that's visible and disturbing, often with mild humour.
Learn idioms by speaking them
Idioms are most useful when they land in a real conversation. Practice them out loud in Kango — get instant feedback on tone and timing.
Download Kango on iOS