与世无争 (yǔ shì wú zhēng) — to hold oneself aloof from worldly affairs; to be detached and not strive for fame or gain

Definition

Literally 'not contend with the world': a chengyu describing someone who withdraws from competition and lives peacefully, unconcerned with fame or gain.

idiom
to hold oneself aloof from worldly affairsto be detached and not strive for fame or gain

Examples

  • ，与世无争。
    Tā tuì xiū hòu bān dào xiāng xia, guò qǐ le yǔ shì wú zhēng de shēng huó.
    After retirement, he moved to the countryside and started a life aloof from worldly affairs.
  • 与世无争，。
    Zhè wèi lǎo huà jiā yì shēng yǔ shì wú zhēng, zhī zhuān zhù yú yì shù chuàng zuò.
    This old painter spent his whole life detached from worldly affairs, focusing solely on artistic creation.
  • 与世无争，。
    yǔ shì wú zhēng De rén wǎng wǎng gèng jiā kuài lè, yīn wèi tā men bù yǔ rén pān bǐ.
    People who hold themselves aloof from the world are often happier because they don't compare themselves with others.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

与世with the world
与yǔbe with世shìworld
动宾Verb + object
无争no contention
无wúwithout争zhēngstrife
动宾Verb + object

与世 points to the world, while 无争 means no contention, giving the sense of not striving against worldly affairs.

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 與; 与 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 與 is built from 舁 and 牙, and both parts give the sound.

Open 与 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 世 →

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 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 爭; 争 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 爭 shows two hands on a plowshare; the simplified 争 is a later abbreviation, so this picture belongs to 爭, not 争.

Open 争 →

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