每天成语
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锲而不舍

*The explanations on this page are generated by AI. Please note that they may contain inaccurate information.

1. Basic Information

  • Pinyin: qiè ér bù shě
  • English Translation: To keep carving without stopping (unwavering perseverance)
  • Idiom Composition: 「锲」（To carve or engrave with a tool.）＋「而」（A conjunction used here to connect the action and the result (and yet/but).）＋「不」（Not.）＋「舍」（To stop, give up, or abandon.）
  • Meaning: To continue carving or engraving without giving up, even when faced with immense difficulty. It describes a spirit of persistent effort, tenacity, and the determination to see a task through to the end.

2. Detailed Meaning and Nuances

「锲而不舍」 contains the following nuances:

  • Continuous Accumulation: The idiom emphasizes that success is not about a single burst of energy, but the steady accumulation of effort over a long period.
  • Resilience Against Hardship: The imagery of carving hard stone or metal implies a mental strength that does not buckle under boredom, repetition, or difficulty.

3. Usage

「锲而不舍」 is mainly used in the following contexts:

  • Academic & Research: Used to praise the dedication required in fields where results take a long time to manifest.
    • Example:「他在科研道路上锲而不舍，终于取得了突破性的成果。」
      （He showed unflagging perseverance on the path of scientific research and finally achieved a breakthrough.)
  • Goal Achievement: Describes the tenacity needed to reach high goals in sports or business.
    • Example:「正是因为这种锲而不舍的精神，这支球队才赢得了冠军。」
      （It was precisely because of this tenacious spirit that the team won the championship.)
  • Mottoes & Encouragement: Commonly used in speeches or as a personal motto to inspire others to keep going.
    • Example:「要想成功，就必须要有锲而不舍的毅力。」
      （If you want to succeed, you must have unwavering persistence.)

Additional Examples:

  1. 面对一次次的失败，他依然锲而不舍地进行实验。
    （Facing repeated failures, he still persevered with his experiments.）
  2. 学习外语没有捷径，只有锲而不舍地练习才能掌握。
    （There are no shortcuts to learning a foreign language; you can only master it through persistent practice.）
  3. 警方锲而不舍地追踪线索，最终抓获了嫌疑人。
    （The police relentlessly followed the clues and finally captured the suspect.）
  4. 这种锲而不舍的追求完美的态度，值得我们每个人学习。
    （This attitude of tirelessly pursuing perfection is something we should all learn from.）
  5. 只要你锲而不舍，梦想终究会实现。
    （As long as you persevere, your dreams will eventually come true.）

4. Cultural Background and Notes

  • The idiom originates from the 'Encouraging Learning' (劝学篇) chapter of the book *Xunzi* (荀子), written by the Warring States period philosopher Xunzi (荀子).
  • The original text states: 'If you start carving and then stop, even rotten wood will not break; if you keep carving without stopping (锲而不舍), even metal and stone can be engraved.' This highlights that persistence can make the impossible possible.
  • In modern Chinese culture, this is one of the most frequently cited idioms in education and business to inspire 'grit.' The famous writer Lu Xun (鲁迅) also championed this spirit, referring to it as 'toughness' (韧 - rèn), a necessary quality for social progress.

5. Similar and Opposite Idioms

6. Summary

锲而不舍 (qiè ér bù shě) is a highly positive idiom used to praise someone's persistence and grit. Originating from the writings of the philosopher Xunzi (荀子), it suggests that just as one can carve through metal or stone by not stopping, any goal can be achieved through continuous, 'never-say-die' effort. It is a staple in academic and professional contexts to emphasize that 'persistence is the key to success.'

Featured in the Chuken exam (Japan's Chinese test)Level 1Pre-Level 1

Idiom Essay

qiè ér bù shě
锲而不舍
Perseverance
miàn duì面对hěn很nán难de的shì qíng事情，wǒ men我们cháng cháng常常huì会chǎn shēng产生yī zhǒng一种wú lì gǎn无力感。

When facing very difficult tasks, we often feel a sense of powerlessness.

hǎo xiàng好像nà ge那个kùn nán困难shì是yī kuài一块jiān yìng坚硬de的shí tou石头，huò zhě或者shì是bīng lěng冰冷de的jīn shǔ金属，bù guǎn不管zěn me怎么yòng lì用力，tā它dōu都wén sī bù dòng纹丝不动。

It is as if the difficulty is a hard rock or cold metal that remains unmoved no matter how much force is applied.

zhè shí hòu这时候，nǐ你kě néng可能huì会huái yí怀疑：shì bú shì是不是wǒ我de的lì qì力气tài太xiǎo小le了？

At this moment, you might wonder: Is my strength too small?

shì bú shì是不是zhè这jiàn shì件事gēn běn根本bù不kě néng可能wán chéng完成？

Is this task simply impossible to complete?

zhōng wén中文lǐ里，yǒu有yí gè一个chéng yǔ成语，zhuān mén专门yòng lái用来huí dá回答zhè zhǒng这种huái yí怀疑，jiào叫“qiè ér bù shě锲而不舍”。

In Chinese, there is an idiom specifically used to answer such doubts, called 锲而不舍.

zhè ge这个cí词tīng qǐ lái听起来hěn很yǒu有lì liàng力量，dàn但tā它de的yuán yì原意qí shí其实shì是yí gè一个hěn很xì zhì细致de的dòng zuò动作。

This word sounds very powerful, but its original meaning actually refers to a very meticulous action.

“qiè锲”，shì是yòng用dāo刀qù去diāo kè雕刻；“shě舍”，shì是fàng qì放弃、tíng zhǐ停止。

锲 means to carve with a knife; 舍 means to give up or stop.

hé qǐ lái合起来de的yì si意思jiù shì就是：yì zhí一直zài在diāo kè雕刻，zhōng jiān中间bù kěn不肯tíng xià lái停下来。

The combined meaning is: to keep carving without stopping.

zhè ge这个chéng yǔ成语lái zì来自yī jù一句fēi cháng非常yǒu míng有名de的gǔ huà古话。

This idiom comes from a very famous ancient saying.

gǔ rén古人shuō说，rú guǒ如果nǐ你kè刻jǐ xià几下jiù就tíng停le了，nà me那么jí shǐ即使shì是fǔ làn腐烂de的mù tou木头，nǐ你yě也zhé折bù duàn不断tā它；dàn但rú guǒ如果nǐ你yì zhí一直kè刻xià qù下去，bù kěn不肯sōng shǒu松手，nà me那么jí shǐ即使shì是jīn shǔ金属hé和shí tou石头，yě也néng能bèi被nǐ你diāo雕chū出huā wén花纹。

The ancients said that if you stop after carving just a few times, you cannot even break rotten wood; but if you keep carving and refuse to let go, then even metal and stone can be engraved with patterns.

suǒ yǐ所以，“qiè ér bù shě锲而不舍”bù jǐn jǐn不仅仅shì是zài在shuō说“jiān chí坚持”。

Therefore, 锲而不舍 is not just about persistence.

tā它qiáng diào强调de的shì是yī zhǒng一种“yǐ róu kè gāng以柔克刚”de的guò chéng过程。

It emphasizes a process of overcoming hardness with softness.

tā它chéng rèn承认kùn nán困难shì是“yìng硬”de的，jiù就xiàng像jīn shí金石yī yàng一样；dàn但tā它gèng更xiāng xìn相信，chóng fù重复de的dòng zuò动作shì是yǒu有lì liàng力量de的。

It acknowledges that difficulties are hard, like metal and stone; but it believes even more that repetitive actions possess power.

wǒ men我们zài在shēng huó生活zhōng中，qí shí其实hěn很shǎo少zhēn de真的qù去diāo kè雕刻shí tou石头。

In our lives, we rarely actually carve stones.

dàn但wǒ men我们dōu都zài在diāo kè雕刻bié de别的dōng xī东西。

But we are all carving other things.

yě xǔ也许shì是xué xí学习yī mén一门hěn很nán难de的yǔ yán语言，yě xǔ也许shì是xiǎng yào想要gǎi biàn改变zì jǐ自己xìng gé性格lǐ里de的mǒu某gè个ruò diǎn弱点。

Perhaps it is learning a difficult language, or wanting to change a weakness in our character.

yī一kāi shǐ开始，nǐ你kě néng可能jué de觉得méi yǒu没有rèn hé任何biàn huà变化，nà ge那个kùn nán困难hái shì还是lì立zài在nà lǐ那里，lěng bīng bīng冷冰冰de的。

At first, you might feel there is no change at all, and the difficulty still stands there, cold and unyielding.

zhè shí hòu这时候，zhēn zhèng真正dǒng de懂得“qiè ér bù shě锲而不舍”de的rén人，bú huì不会yīn wèi因为kàn bú jiàn看不见jié guǒ结果ér而jiāo lǜ焦虑。

At this time, people who truly understand 锲而不舍 will not feel anxious because they cannot see immediate results.

yīn wèi因为tā他zhī dào知道，měi每yī cì一次nǔ lì努力，dōu都xiàng像shì是zài在shí tou石头shàng上kè刻le了yī dāo一刀。

Because they know that every effort is like making a cut on the stone.

yī dāo一刀yě xǔ也许kàn bú jiàn看不见hén jì痕迹，dàn但yī qiān dāo一千刀、yī wàn dāo一万刀zhī hòu之后，jiān yìng坚硬de的dōng xī东西yí dìng一定huì会fā shēng发生gǎi biàn改变。

One cut might not leave a visible mark, but after a thousand or ten thousand cuts, the hard object will surely change.

zhè ge这个chéng yǔ成语zuì最dòng rén动人de的dì fāng地方，zài yú在于tā它bǎ把“shí jiān时间”biàn chéng变成le了“gōng jù工具”。

The most moving part of this idiom is that it turns time into a tool.

tā它gào sù告诉wǒ men我们：bù不xū yào需要nǐ你lì dà wú qióng力大无穷，zhǐ只xū yào需要nǐ你bù不yuàn yì愿意tíng zhǐ停止。

It tells us: you do not need infinite strength, you only need to be unwilling to stop.

xià cì下次dāng当nǐ你miàn duì面对yí gè一个kàn shì看似bù不kě néng可能jiě jué解决de的nán tí难题，jué de觉得zì jǐ自己hěn很miǎo xiǎo渺小de的shí hòu时候，bù fáng不妨xiǎng想yī xiǎng一想zhè ge这个cí词。

Next time you face a seemingly impossible problem and feel small, try thinking of this word.

gào sù告诉zì jǐ自己：wǒ我xiàn zài现在jiù shì就是zài在diāo kè雕刻shí tou石头，zhǐ yào只要wǒ我bù tíng shǒu不停手，tā它zhōng jiū终究huì会bèi被gǎi biàn改变。

Tell yourself: I am carving stone right now, and as long as I do not stop, it will eventually be changed.

zhè这jiù shì就是“qiè ér bù shě锲而不舍”。

This is 锲而不舍.

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