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不着边际 (bù zhuó biān jì) — (idiom) irrelevant, off-topic, not to the point

Definition

An idiom meaning 'off-topic, wide of the mark' — used to criticize speech or writing that wanders with no clear point or focus.

idiom
irrelevantoff-topicnot to the point

Examples

  • ，。
    Tā shuō huà zǒng shì bù zhuó biān jì, ràng rén tīng bù míng bái zhòng diǎn.
    He always speaks off-topic, making it hard to understand the main point.
  • 著，。
    Nà piān wén zhāng xiě dé bú zhù biān jì, biān jí ràng tā chóng xīn xiě.
    That article was written irrelevantly, so the editor asked him to rewrite it.
  • ，著。
    Zài huì yì shàng, tā de fā yán wán quán bú zhù biān jì.
    At the meeting, his comments were completely off-topic.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

不着
不bùnot着zhetouch
偏正Modifier + head
边际
边biānedge际jìborder
联合Coordinate

不着边际 puts 不着 ('not touch') against 边际 ('edge'), so it misses the mark.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The picture in 不 originally showed a flower’s calyx; the “no” sense came later from a related character, not from this picture.

Open 不 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 著; 着 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
艸艸cǎograss; plant
Sound part声符shēngfú
者
者zhě著zháo
Same sound today

The traditional form 著 puts 艸 (grass; plant) above 者, which gives the sound; the simplified 着 is a later shorthand.

Open 着 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 邊; 边 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辶Written in full as辵chuòwalking; movement
Sound part声符shēngfú
臱
臱mián邊biān(r)
Same sound today

The traditional form 邊 pairs 辶 (walking; movement) with the sound part 臱; the simplified 边 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the original parts.

Open 边 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 際; 际 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
阝Written in full as阜fù
Sound part声符shēngfú
祭
祭jì際⁰jì
Same sound today

The traditional form 際 pairs 阝 with 祭: 阝 gives the meaning and 祭 gives the sound. The simplified 际 is a later shorthand.

Open 际 →
Appears in
Idioms & Set Phrases

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