弱不禁风 (ruò bù jīn fēng) — (idiom) too weak to withstand even a gust of wind; extremely fragile (of a person's health)

Definition

Idiom painting a vivid image: 'so weak that even a gust of wind could topple you.' Used to describe a person's health or physique as extremely frail — always about physical fragility, not character.

idiom
too weak to withstand even a gust of windextremely fragile (of a person's health)

Examples

  • 弱不禁风，。
    Tā shēn tǐ ruò bù jīn fēng, jīng cháng shēng bìng.
    His health is so fragile that he often gets sick.
  • 弱不禁风，。
    Zhè wèi lǎo rén kàn qǐ lái ruò bù jīn fēng, dàn jīng shén hěn hǎo.
    This elderly person looks frail, but has a strong spirit.
  • 弱不禁风，。
    Bié kàn tā ruò bù jīn fēng de yàng zi, qí shí hěn yǒu lì qi.
    Don't be fooled by his frail appearance; he's actually quite strong.

Origin

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 弓弓gōngbow
  • 彡彡shānhair, meaning "decoration" in this case

弱 pairs 弓 (bow) with 彡 (hair), showing a decorative bow that is functionally inferior, or a shaking, worn-out bow.

Open 弱 →

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
示示shìaltar
Sound part声符shēngfú
林
林lín禁jìn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

禁 has 林 above 示, an altar. The 林 part gives the sound, and the altar part connects the character to taboo or restricted matters.

Open 禁 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 风 →

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