时不我待 (shí bù wǒ dài) — Time and tide wait for no one; time waits for no one.

Definition

A classical-style idiom (from 《论语》): 'time waits for no one,' used to urge oneself or others to act now rather than delay.

idiom
Time and tide wait for no onetime waits for no one.

Examples

  • 时不我待，。
    shí bù wǒ dài, Wǒ men bì xū zhuā jǐn shí jiān nǔ lì xué xí.
    Time waits for no one; we must seize the moment and study hard.
  • 时不我待，。
    Tā shēn gǎn shí bù wǒ dài, suǒ yǐ cóng bú làng fèi shí jiān zuò wú yì yì de shì.
    He deeply feels that time waits for no one, so he never wastes time on meaningless things.
  • ，时不我待，。
    Miàn duì jī yù, wǒ men yào jì zhù shí bù wǒ dài, yǒng gǎn xíng dòng.
    When facing opportunities, we must remember that time waits for no one and act bravely.

Origin

Characters in this word

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 時; 时 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
日日rìsun; day
Sound part声符shēngfú
之
之zhī時shí
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 時 pairs 日 (sun/day) with 之 as the part that gives the sound; the simplified 时 is not the form described.

Open 时 →

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 →

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

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

The glyph 我 originally drew a trident-like weapon. It was borrowed purely for its sound to write the pronoun "I", so the picture and the meaning are unrelated.

Open 我 →

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
彳彳chì
Sound part声符shēngfú
寺
寺sì待dài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

待 is built from 彳 on the left and 寺 on the right; 彳 is tied to the meaning, and 寺 gives the sound.

Open 待 →

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