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问心无愧 (wèn xīn wú kuì) — to have a clear conscience; to feel no shame

Definition

A four-character idiom meaning 'to have a clear conscience' — used when you have acted rightly and feel no guilt or shame. Pairs naturally with 可以 / 能够 to describe the resulting state.

idiom
to have a clear conscienceto feel no shame

Examples

  • 问心无愧。
    Wǒ duì guò qù wèn xīn wú kuì.
    I have a clear conscience about the past.
  • ，问心无愧。
    Tā méi yǒu ná qián, suǒ yǐ kě yǐ wèn xīn wú kuì.
    He didn't take the money, so he could have a clear conscience.
  • ，问心无愧。
    Zhǐ yào nǐ jìn lì le, jiù kě yǐ wèn xīn wú kuì.
    As long as you have done your best, you can have a clear conscience.

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 問; 问 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
門
門mén問wèn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 問 combines 口 (mouth) with 門, which gives the sound; the simplified 问 is a later shorthand and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 问 →

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

The shape of 心 comes from a drawing of a heart, now highly stylized.

Open 心 →

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
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
鬼
鬼guǐ愧kuì
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

愧 has 心, the heart, on the left and 鬼 on the right. 鬼 gives the sound, while 心 shows that the meaning is a feeling in the heart.

Open 愧 →
Appears in
Idioms & Set Phrases

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