朽木不雕 — “Rotten wood cannot be carved”
朽木不雕 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “a person who is beyond improvement or incapable of being trained due to a lack of potential, diligence, or ambition; someone who is inherently untrainable or unimprovable”. Literally, “Rotten wood cannot be carved”.
朽木不雕 Pronunciation and Pinyin
朽木不雕 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 朽木不雕
Origin and Story of 朽木不雕
During the Spring and Autumn period, Zai Yu, a disciple of Confucius, was very eloquent and skilled with words. Initially, Confucius was fond of him, believing he would achieve great things.
However, it wasn't long before Confucius found that Zai Yu frequently missed his lessons. When Confucius sent someone to find him, Zai Yu was discovered fast asleep in his room. Learning of this, Confucius felt a profound sadness and remarked, "Rotten wood cannot be carved, and walls made of dung and dirt cannot be whitewashed."
Idioms Related to 朽木不雕
Synonyms of 朽木不雕
More idioms starting with 朽
- xiǔ朽gē戈dùn钝jiǎ甲poorly equipped troops
- xiǔ朽mù木zhī之cái才a person of no talent or potential
- xiǔ朽mù木kū枯zhū株useless old person
- xiǔ朽mù木sǐ死huī灰utterly disheartened and lifeless
- xiǔ朽mù木shēng生huā花turn from decay to flourishing
- xiǔ朽mù木fèn粪tǔ土an incorrigible good-for-nothing
- xiǔ朽mù木fèn粪qiáng墙beyond salvage or improvement
- xiǔ朽mù木nán难diāo彫beyond redemption or improvement
- xiǔ朽tiáo条fǔ腐suǒ索extremely fragile, weak, or unreliable
- xiǔ朽zhū株kū枯mù木old, decaying, and useless
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Open the tool →Questions about 朽木不雕
What does 朽木不雕 mean?
朽木不雕 (xiǔ mù bù diāo) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “a person who is beyond improvement or incapable of being trained due to a lack of potential, diligence, or ambition; someone who is inherently untrainable or unimprovable”.
How do you pronounce 朽木不雕?
朽木不雕 is pronounced xiǔ mù bù diāo in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 朽木不雕 literally mean?
Literally, 朽木不雕 means “Rotten wood cannot be carved”. It is used to mean “a person who is beyond improvement or incapable of being trained due to a lack of potential, diligence, or ambition; someone who is inherently untrainable or unimprovable”.
Where does 朽木不雕 come from?
朽木不雕 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 朽木不雕?
朽坏的木头无法雕刻。比喻人不上进，无法成材。