How do you pronounce 不打自招?

不打自招 is pronounced bù dǎ zì zhāo in Mandarin Chinese.

What does 不打自招 literally mean?

Literally, 不打自招 means “confess without being beaten”. It is used to mean “to confess without being pressed or interrogated”.

Where does 不打自招 come from?

不打自招 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.

What is the Chinese definition of 不打自招?

招：招供。旧指没有用刑就招供。比喻做了坏事或有坏的意图自我暴露出来。

不打自招 — “To confess without being pressed or interrogated”

不打自招 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to confess without being pressed or interrogated”. To incriminate oneself by one's own words or actions, revealing guilt or ill intent without prompting. Literally, “confess without being beaten”.

Frequency

不打自招 Pronunciation and Pinyin

不bù
打dǎ
自zì
招zhāo

不打自招 Character Breakdown

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
不	bù	4	not
打	dǎ	5	to hit, strike, or play
自	zì	6	from, self, naturally
招	zhāo	8	beckon, attract, confess, trick

Example Sentence with 不打自招

他偷了邻居的苹果，结果看到邻居在找，自己就急忙解释，这真是有点不打自招了。

He stole his neighbor's apples. When he saw his neighbor searching for them, he immediately tried to explain, which was a clear case of giving himself away.

Origin and Story of 不打自招

During their journey to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures, Tripitaka and his three disciples sought lodging at a temple. Sun Wukong proudly displayed their precious kasaya (monk's robe) to the temple monks.

That night, an old monk, consumed by greed, set the temple on fire and stole the kasaya. However, as he fled, he was captured by a demon from Black Wind Mountain near Grassy Slope. Without any coercion, he 'confessed without being beaten' (不打自招), promptly handing over Tripitaka's kasaya to the demon.

Upon learning of this, Sun Wukong immediately rushed to the scene, defeated the demon, and retrieved the kasaya.

Idioms Related to 不打自招

Synonyms of 不打自招

Antonyms of 不打自招

More idioms starting with 不

Questions about 不打自招

What does 不打自招 mean?: 不打自招 (bù dǎ zì zhāo) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to confess without being pressed or interrogated”.
How do you pronounce 不打自招?: 不打自招 is pronounced bù dǎ zì zhāo in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 不打自招 literally mean?: Literally, 不打自招 means “confess without being beaten”. It is used to mean “to confess without being pressed or interrogated”.
Where does 不打自招 come from?: 不打自招 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 不打自招?: 招：招供。旧指没有用刑就招供。比喻做了坏事或有坏的意图自我暴露出来。

Copy the pinyin for 不打自招 →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.