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百折不挠
百折不挠
百折不挠
百折不挠
百折不挠
百折不挠
百折不挠
百折不挠

百折不挠 — “To be undaunted by repeated setbacks”

百折不挠 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be undaunted by repeated setbacks”. To persevere in spite of all difficulties and frustrations. Literally, “A hundred bends without yielding; unyielding after a hundred setbacks”.

Frequency

百折不挠 Pronunciation and Pinyin

百折不挠 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order
CharacterPinyinStrokesMeaning
百
bǎi6one hundred, numerous
折
zhé7break, bend, or discount
不
bù4not
挠
náo9scratch or tickle

Example Sentence with 百折不挠

面对重重困难,他始终百折不挠,最终实现了自己的目标。
Facing numerous difficulties, he remained undaunted by repeated setbacks and eventually achieved his goal.

Origin and Story of 百折不挠

During the Eastern Han Dynasty, Qiao Xuan, who served as the Chief Secretary of the Minister of Education, was an incorruptible and upright official. He even sacrificed his own son to fight against bandits, suggesting that the imperial court enact laws to prevent kidnapping incidents.

He later resigned from his official post and returned to his hometown after impeaching Gai Sheng, the Administrator of Nanyang.

Cao Cao greatly admired him, praising him for having 'the spirit of being unyielding despite a hundred setbacks, and unwavering in the face of great principles.'

Idioms Related to 百折不挠

Synonyms of 百折不挠

  • bù不qū屈bù不náo挠Unyielding and indomitable
  • jiān坚rèn韧bù不bá拔unwavering determination and resilience
  • bǎi百zhé折bù不huí回persevere with unyielding determination

Antonyms of 百折不挠

  • yī一jué蹶bù不zhèn振demoralized and unable to recover after setback
  • bàn半tú途ér而fèi废give up halfway
  • zhī知nán难ér而tuì退know when to withdraw

More idioms starting with 百

  • bǎi百wàn万mǎi买zhái宅,,qiān千wàn万mǎi买lín邻Good neighbors are priceless
  • bǎi百wàn万xióng雄bīng兵a vast and mighty army
  • bǎi百wàn万xióng雄shī师a vast and mighty army
  • bǎi百zhàng丈gān竿tóu头pinnacle of achievement, strive for more
  • bǎi百xià下bǎi百quán全perfectly accurate and unfailingly successful
  • bǎi百xià下bǎi百zháo着unfailingly successful
  • bǎi百bù不yī一cún存not one in a hundred remains
  • bǎi百bù不yī一shuǎng爽always accurate and reliable
  • bǎi百bù不yī一dài贷make no exceptions
  • bǎi百bù不yī一yù遇extremely rare
  • bǎi百bù不wèi为duō多,,yī一bù不wèi为shǎo少Excellent things are always valuable
  • bǎi百bù不shī失yī一unerringly accurate

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Questions about 百折不挠

What does 百折不挠 mean?

百折不挠 (bǎi zhé bù náo) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be undaunted by repeated setbacks”.

How do you pronounce 百折不挠?

百折不挠 is pronounced bǎi zhé bù náo in Mandarin Chinese.

What does 百折不挠 literally mean?

Literally, 百折不挠 means “a hundred bends without yielding; unyielding after a hundred setbacks”. It is used to mean “to be undaunted by repeated setbacks”.

Where does 百折不挠 come from?

百折不挠 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.

What is the Chinese definition of 百折不挠?

折:挫折;挠:弯曲。比喻意志坚强,无论受到多少次挫折,毫不动摇退缩。

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