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势不两立
势不两立
势不两立
势不两立
势不两立
势不两立
势不两立
势不两立

势不两立 — “To be absolutely incompatible or irreconcilable”

势不两立 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be absolutely incompatible or irreconcilable”. Of two opposing forces or entities that cannot coexist. Literally, “cannot stand as two”.

Frequency

势不两立 Pronunciation and Pinyin

  • 势shì
  • 不bù
  • 两liǎng
  • 立lì

势不两立 Character Breakdown

CharacterPinyinStrokesMeaning
势
shì8power, influence, or trend
不
bù4not
两
liǎng7two, a couple of
立
lì5stand, establish, immediately

Example Sentence with 势不两立

这对搭档在经营理念上存在严重分歧,简直势不两立。
This pair of partners had serious differences in their business philosophies, making them utterly irreconcilable.

Origin and Story of 势不两立

At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Cao Cao led an army of hundreds of thousands to attack Sun Quan and Liu Bei.

Sun Quan convened his ministers to discuss countermeasures. Zhang Zhao and others advocated surrender, while Zhou Yu argued that they should unite with Liu Bei and resist Cao Cao's army by exploiting its inability to fight a protracted war.

Sun Quan adopted Zhou Yu's suggestion, drew his sword, chopped the corner of the table, and swore that he would be irreconcilable with Cao Cao.

Idioms Related to 势不两立

Synonyms of 势不两立

  • nǐ你sǐ死wǒ我huó活a fight to the death
  • shì誓bù不liǎng两lì立sworn enemies, cannot coexist

Antonyms of 势不两立

  • qīn亲mì密wú无jiān间extremely close and intimate
  • qíng情tóu投yì意hé合to be perfectly suited to each other

More idioms starting with 势

  • shì势bù不liǎng两quán全Two cannot both be complete
  • shì势bù不liǎng两cún存cannot coexist
  • shì势bù不kě可wèi为The situation is beyond remedy
  • shì势bù不kě可dāng当unstoppable momentum
  • shì势bù不kě可dǎng挡unstoppable and irresistible momentum
  • shì势bù不kě可è遏unstoppable momentum
  • shì势bù不róng容huǎn缓the situation brooks no delay
  • shì势bù不bìng并lì立Cannot coexist; mutually exclusive
  • shì势qīng倾tiān天xià下Overwhelming power that sways the world
  • shì势qīng倾cháo朝yě野wield immense power and influence
  • shì势lì利yǎn眼a snob who judges people by wealth
  • shì势li力zhī之jiāo交opportunistic relationship for power or gain

Questions about 势不两立

What does 势不两立 mean?
势不两立 (shì bù liǎng lì) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be absolutely incompatible or irreconcilable”.
How do you pronounce 势不两立?
势不两立 is pronounced shì bù liǎng lì in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 势不两立 literally mean?
Literally, 势不两立 means “cannot stand as two”. It is used to mean “to be absolutely incompatible or irreconcilable”.
Where does 势不两立 come from?
势不两立 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 势不两立?
两立:双方并立。指敌对的双方不能同时存在。比喻矛盾不可调和。
Copy the pinyin for 势不两立 →Choose tone marks or tone numbers and copy the complete four-character reading.Read Chinese vocabulary and idiom guides →Continue with words, phrases, and idioms explained through natural examples.

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