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一言不发 (yī yán bù fā) — to not say a word; to remain completely silent

Definition

Used when someone deliberately or stubbornly stays silent through a whole event. Unlike 无话可说 ('have nothing to say' from shock or guilt), this emphasizes refusing to speak.

phrase
to not say a wordto remain completely silent

Examples

  • 一言不发，。
    Tā zuò zài nà lǐ yī yán bù fā, kàn qǐ lái hěn bù gāo xìng.
    He sat there without saying a word, looking very unhappy.
  • ，一言不发。
    Tīng dào zhè ge xiāo xi, tā yī yán bù fā dì zhuǎn shēn lí kāi le.
    Hearing this news, she turned and left without a word.
  • ，一言不发。
    Zhěng gè huì yì zhōng, tā shǐ zhōng yī yán bù fā.
    Throughout the meeting, he didn't say a word.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
主谓zhǔwèiSubject + predicate

A small sentence frozen into a word: something, and what it does or is.

一言one word
一yīone言yánword
偏正Modifier + head
不发not utter
不bùnot发fāutter
偏正Modifier + head

With 一言 and 不发, no word is spoken.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

一 is drawn as one horizontal stroke, marking the number one.

Open 一 →

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

The early form of 言 shows an opening and a mark indicating a location; the location is not described as the source of speech.

Open 言 →

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 發; 发 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 发 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (爆发, 出发) it is 發; in others (理发, 头发) it is 髮.

The form 發, which 发 stands for in many words, was originally drawn as a bow firing an arrow.

Open 发 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Idioms & Set Phrases

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