一窍不通 (yī qiào bù tōng) — to be completely ignorant (about a subject); to know absolutely nothing; to be utterly clueless
Definition
A chengyu used to say someone understands NONE of a subject — every 'hole' (窍) is blocked. Usually said about oneself or others with light, self-deprecating humor; stronger than 什么都不知道.
idiom
to be completely ignorant (about a subject)to know absolutely nothingto be utterly clueless
Examples
- 一窍不通。Wǒ duì diàn nǎo biān chéng yī qiào bù tōng.I'm completely ignorant about computer programming.
- ，一窍不通。Tā suī rán zài gōng sī gōng zuò duō nián, dàn duì cái wù yī qiào bù tōng.Although he has worked at the company for many years, he knows nothing about finance.
- ，一窍不通。Bié wèn tā yuè lǐ wèn tí, tā yī qiào bù tōng.Don't ask him music theory questions — he's utterly clueless.
Appears in
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