功成不居 — “Accomplish but not claim credit”
功成不居 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to achieve great success or make significant contributions, yet remain humble and not take personal credit for the achievements; to accomplish something and not boast about it or claim it for oneself”. Literally, “Accomplish but not claim credit”.
功成不居 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 功gōng
- 成chéng
- 不bù
- 居jū
功成不居 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 功成不居
Origin and Story of 功成不居
During the Spring and Autumn period, the philosopher Laozi proposed dialectical political views. He believed that people in the world understood the opposition between beauty and ugliness, and that existence and non-existence give rise to each other.
A sage governing a state knows what to do and what not to do, adopting a policy of non-action (wu wei); knowledge can be taught or not taught, through a teaching that does not speak.
All things have their own purpose, and the sage does not try to control them. When achievements are made, the sage does not claim credit for them, allowing people to attribute the success to him naturally.
Idioms Related to 功成不居
Synonyms of 功成不居
Antonyms of 功成不居
More idioms starting with 功
- gōng功yī一měi美èr二achieve two good outcomes from one effort
- gōng功bù不chéng成，，míng名bù不jiù就fail to achieve anything or gain fame
- gōng功bù不bǔ补huàn患merits do not compensate for harm
- gōng功kuī亏yī一kuì篑fail at the last step
- gōng功dào到zì自rán然chéng成Effort brings success
- gōng功láo劳hàn汗mǎ马distinguished service in battle
- gōng功tóng同shǎng赏yì异same merit, different rewards
- gōng功míng名lì利lù禄fame, wealth, and high social status
- gōng功míng名fù富guì贵fame, wealth, and high position
- gōng功míng名cèng蹭dèng蹬repeated career setbacks
- gōng功jūn均tiān天dì地achievements as vast as heaven and earth
- gōng功chuí垂zhú竹bó帛achievements recorded in history
Questions about 功成不居
- What does 功成不居 mean?
- 功成不居 (gōng chéng bù jū) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to achieve great success or make significant contributions, yet remain humble and not take personal credit for the achievements; to accomplish something and not boast about it or claim it for oneself”.
- How do you pronounce 功成不居?
- 功成不居 is pronounced gōng chéng bù jū in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 功成不居 literally mean?
- Literally, 功成不居 means “Accomplish but not claim credit”. It is used to mean “to achieve great success or make significant contributions, yet remain humble and not take personal credit for the achievements; to accomplish something and not boast about it or claim it for oneself”.
- Where does 功成不居 come from?
- 功成不居 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 功成不居?
- 居：承当，占有。原意是任其自然存在，不去占为己有。后形容立了功而不把功劳归于自己。