一文不名 (yī wén bú) — penniless; without a penny to one's name

Definition

Examples

• 他年轻时一文不名，全靠自己打拼才有了今天。
  Tā nián qīng shí yī wén bú, quán kào zì jǐ dǎ pīn cái yǒu le jīn tiān.
  When he was young, he was penniless and relied entirely on his own hard work to get where he is today.
• 那场金融危机让许多富翁变得一文不名。
  Nà chǎng jīn róng wēi jī ràng xǔ duō fù wēng biàn de yī wén bú.
  That financial crisis made many wealthy people become penniless.
• 他一文不名的样子让人很难相信他曾是富豪。
  Tā yī wén bú de yàng zi ràng rén hěn nán xiāng xìn tā céng shì fù háo.
  His penniless look makes it hard to believe he was once a millionaire.