'翻箱倒柜' (fān xiāng dào guì) is a vivid idiom that literally means 'to flip over boxes and overturn cabinets.' It vividly depicts an extremely thorough, chaotic, and energetic search—usually for something lost or hidden. Each character contributes to the image: 翻 (fān) means 'to flip' or 'to turn over,' 箱 (xiāng) is 'box' or 'chest,' 倒 (dào) means 'to overturn' or 'to tip over,' and 柜 (guì) is 'cabinet' or 'cupboard.' Together, they evoke a scene of intense rummaging, often with things scattered everywhere.

This idiom is commonly used in everyday spoken and written Chinese to describe frantic searching—not just physically (e.g., looking for keys), but also metaphorically (e.g., digging through old files or memories). It carries a slightly humorous or exasperated tone and implies both effort and disorder. While it’s not formal, it’s widely understood and frequently appears in storytelling, dialogue, and descriptive writing.