无关紧要

1. Basic Information

• Pinyin: wú guān jǐn yào
• English Translation: Not important, insignificant, trivial
• Idiom Composition: 「无」（Without, none）＋「关」（To relate to, to concern）＋「紧要」（Important, critical）
• Meaning: Describes a matter that is not important, does not affect the majority, or is not a problem.

2. Detailed Meaning and Nuances

「无关紧要」 contains the following nuances:

• Low importance: Indicates that a matter has little impact on the overall situation or outcome.
• Lack of impact: Means that the matter is not central to the issue and can be ignored without consequence.
• Low priority: Suggests that compared to other important matters, it can be postponed or does not need consideration.

3. Usage

「无关紧要」 is mainly used in the following contexts:

• Evaluating situations: Used when judging that a matter is not important.
  • Example:「对于整个项目来说，这个小错误无关紧要，不会影响最终结果。」
    （For the entire project, this small mistake is not important and will not affect the final result.）
• Basis for judgment: Used to explain the reason for downplaying or ignoring a matter.
  • Example:「在紧急情况下，一些细节问题可以无关紧要，关键是要迅速行动。」
    （In emergency situations, some minor details can be insignificant; the key is to act quickly.）
• Expressing attitude: Used to express an attitude of indifference or lack of importance towards a matter.
  • Example:「虽然他迟到了，但因为会议还没开始，所以无关紧要。」
    （Although he was late, it is not important because the meeting hasn't started yet.）

Additional Examples:

1. 在决定公司未来方向的重大会议上，个人的小意见无关紧要。
   （At an important meeting deciding the company's future direction, individual minor opinions are not important.）
2. 对于一个厨师来说，食材的新鲜度至关重要，而刀工的细微差别则无关紧要。
   （For a chef, the freshness of ingredients is crucial, while subtle differences in knife skills are insignificant.）
3. 这个问题无关紧要，我们还是先讨论下一个议题吧。
   （This issue is not important, so let's discuss the next topic.）
4. 他的意见无关紧要，因为他根本不了解情况。
   （His opinion is not important because he doesn't understand the situation at all.）
5. 别担心，这只是个无关紧要的小插曲，不会影响我们的计划。
   （Don't worry, this is just a trivial incident and won't affect our plans.）

4. Cultural Background and Notes

• Criteria for judging importance: What is considered '无关紧要' varies depending on the situation and values. Something unimportant to one person may be important to another.
• Contextual usage: '无关紧要' is a relatively formal expression. In daily conversation, expressions like '不重要' (not important) or '没什么大不了的' (not a big deal) are often used.

5. Similar and Opposite Idioms

• Similar Idioms:
  • 微不足道 (wēi bù zú dào): Insignificant, trivial matter.
  • 无足轻重 (wú zú qīng zhòng): Not important, negligible.
• Opposite Idioms:
  • 至关重要 (zhì guān zhòng yào): Extremely important.
  • 举足轻重 (jǔ zú qīng zhòng): Holding an important position, with every move having great influence.

6. Summary

'无关紧要' is an idiom that describes something as unimportant and not having a significant impact on the whole. When using this term, it is important to clearly distinguish what is important and what is not, and to choose appropriate expressions according to the context. Additionally, considering the other person's position and values to avoid being rude is also important.