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不见棺材不落泪
不见棺材不落泪
不见棺材不落泪
不见棺材不落泪
不见棺材不落泪
不见棺材不落泪
不见棺材不落泪
不见棺材不落泪

不见棺材不落泪 — “Not shed tears until seeing the coffin”

不见棺材不落泪 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be stubbornly unwilling to face reality or change one's ways until one is confronted with undeniable, severe consequences; to not give up or acknowledge defeat until absolute failure is imminent”. Literally, “Not shed tears until seeing the coffin”.

Frequency

不见棺材不落泪 Pronunciation and Pinyin

不见棺材不落泪 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order
CharacterPinyinStrokesMeaning
不
bù4not
见
jiàn4to see or meet
棺
guān12coffin or casket
材
cai7material, talent, ability
不
bù4not
落
luò12fall, drop, settle, decline
泪
lèi8tears from eyes

Example Sentence with 不见棺材不落泪

尽管大家再三劝告他要调整策略,但他依然固执己见,看来真是‘不见棺材不落泪’。
Despite repeated advice to adjust his strategy, he remained stubborn and insisted on his own way; it seems he won't give up until he faces utter failure.

Origin and Story of 不见棺材不落泪

Ancient scholar An Hongjian was known for his humor and wit, but he was terribly afraid of his wife.

When his father-in-law passed away, he and his wife set off to offer their condolences. On the way, they both began to weep loudly. His wife, a very strict person, found it strange that her husband was crying without shedding any tears.

When she asked why, An Hongjian replied that he had wiped them away with a handkerchief. His wife then sternly instructed him that he must shed tears when they saw the coffin.

Idioms Related to 不见棺材不落泪

Synonyms of 不见棺材不落泪

  • bù不jiàn见guān棺cái材bù不xià下lèi泪not give up until faced with undeniable evidence

More idioms starting with 不

  • bù不yī一ér而zú足numerous and varied, impossible to list all
  • bù不sān三bù不sì四improper or disreputable
  • bù不shàng上bù不xià下stuck in an awkward position
  • bù不shàng上bù不luò落in an awkward or embarrassing situation
  • bù不shì世zhī之yè业unparalleled achievements
  • bù不shì世zhī之chóu仇unrivaled enmity
  • bù不shì世zhī之gōng功unparalleled achievement
  • bù不shì世zhī之lüè略unparalleled strategy
  • bù不sàng丧bǐ匕chàng鬯peace and order, rituals undisturbed
  • bù不fēng丰bù不jiǎn俭neither extravagant nor frugal
  • bù不fēng丰bù不shā杀neither extravagant nor frugal
  • bù不wèi为wǔ五dǒu斗mǐ米zhé折yāo腰Refuse to compromise integrity for meager gain

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Questions about 不见棺材不落泪

What does 不见棺材不落泪 mean?

不见棺材不落泪 (bù jiàn guān cai bù luò lèi) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be stubbornly unwilling to face reality or change one's ways until one is confronted with undeniable, severe consequences; to not give up or acknowledge defeat until absolute failure is imminent”.

How do you pronounce 不见棺材不落泪?

不见棺材不落泪 is pronounced bù jiàn guān cai bù luò lèi in Mandarin Chinese.

What does 不见棺材不落泪 literally mean?

Literally, 不见棺材不落泪 means “not shed tears until seeing the coffin”. It is used to mean “to be stubbornly unwilling to face reality or change one's ways until one is confronted with undeniable, severe consequences; to not give up or acknowledge defeat until absolute failure is imminent”.

Where does 不见棺材不落泪 come from?

不见棺材不落泪 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.

What is the Chinese definition of 不见棺材不落泪?

比喻不到彻底失败的时候不肯罢休。

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