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无计可施 (wú jì kě shī) — to be at one's wits' end; to have no way out; to be completely stuck

Definition

A four-character idiom (chéngyǔ) meaning one has run out of tricks or plans — no strategy left to try. It is stronger and more literary than everyday phrases like 没办法, emphasizing total helplessness rather than a single obstacle.

idiom
to be at one's wits' endto have no way outto be completely stuck

Examples

  • ，无计可施。
    Miàn duì duì fāng tí chū de nán tí, tā chè dǐ wú jì kě shī le.
    Faced with the difficult question from the other side, he was completely at his wits' end.
  • ，无计可施。
    Yǎn kàn zī jīn liàn jiù yào duàn liè, gōng sī gāo guǎn men gè gè wú jì kě shī.
    Seeing the capital chain about to break, all the company executives were at their wits' end.
  • ，无计可施。
    Tā shì le suǒ yǒu fāng fǎ dōu bù guǎn yòng, zhēn shì wú jì kě shī.
    He tried every method but none worked; he really was at his wits' end.

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 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 計; 计 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 計 pairs 言 (say) with 十 (all). The simplified 计 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the historical shape.

Open 计 →

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
口口kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
丂
丂kǎo可kě
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

可 pairs 口 (mouth) with 丂 as a sound part; it is tied to air from the mouth, perhaps singing.

Open 可 →

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
㫃㫃㫃
Sound part声符shēngfú
也
也yě施shī
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

施 pairs 㫃, the part connected to its meaning, with 也, the part giving its sound.

Open 施 →
Appears in
Emotions & FeelingsIdioms & Set Phrases

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