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无稽之谈 (wú jī zhī tán) — baseless talk; pure nonsense

Definition

A set phrase for 'baseless talk' — emphasizes that something is completely without basis or evidence. Stronger and more literary than saying 谎话 or 胡说.

noun
baseless talkpure nonsense

Examples

  • 无稽之谈，。
    Tā shuō de nà xiē huà dōu shì wú jī zhī tán, qiān wàn bié xìn.
    Everything he said is pure nonsense — don't believe any of it.
  • 无稽之谈，。
    Zhè zhǒng shuō fǎ chún shǔ wú jī zhī tán, háo wú shì shí yī jù.
    This kind of statement is sheer nonsense, with no factual basis at all.
  • 无稽之谈，。
    Guān yú nà jiàn shì de chuán wén quán shì wú jī zhī tán, bú bì dàng zhēn.
    The rumors about that matter are all baseless talk — don't take them seriously.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 無; 无 is its simplified writing.

For the simplified 无, the story is about 無. 無 drew a person dancing with ox tails held in both hands to pray for rain, then was borrowed for 'have no', so the picture does not explain that meaning.

Open 无 →

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
頁頁yèperson's head
Sound part声符shēngfú
旨
旨zhǐ稽jī
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

稽 keeps 旨 for the sound; its original form used 頁, a person's head, for the meaning.

Open 稽 →

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

The shape pairs 止, a foot, with 一, a beginning place, and means to go.

Open 之 →

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 談; 谈 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánspeech
Sound part声符shēngfú
炎
炎yán談tán
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For 谈, the traditional form 談 pairs 言 (speech) with 炎 (yán) as the sound part.

Open 谈 →
Appears in
Communication & SpeechIdioms & Set Phrases

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