永往直前 (yǒng wǎng zhí qián) — to forge ahead bravely, to advance without hesitation

Definition

Set phrase meaning 'to forge ahead without hesitation.' The standard form is 勇往直前 (yǒng wǎng zhí qián) — this row uses 永 in place of 勇, which is a common variant.

verb
to forge ahead bravelyto advance without hesitation
Easily confused

Examples

  • ，永往直前。
    Miàn duì kùn nan, wǒ men yào yǒng wǎng zhí qián.
    Facing difficulties, we must forge ahead bravely.
  • 永往直前。
    Tā nà zhǒng yǒng wǎng zhí qián de jīng shén zhí dé wǒ men xué xí.
    His spirit of forging ahead bravely is worth learning from.
  • ，永往直前。
    Zài chuàng yè de lù shang, zhǐ yǒu yǒng wǎng zhí qián cái néng chéng gōng.
    On the road of entrepreneurship, only by forging ahead bravely can you succeed.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 永 was drawn as a long river with side streams, or as a person swimming in water.

Open 永 →

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
止止zhǐfoot
Sound part声符shēngfú
王
王wáng往wǎng
Same sound today

The form that became 往 paired 止, a foot, with 王 for the sound; a stepping part was later added, and the right side changed.

Open 往 →

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

The earliest form of 直 pairs 目, an eye, with an unclear stroke 丨.

Open 直 →

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

In the older form of 前, 止 (foot) and 舟 (boat) showed a foot on a boat moving forward; in the current 前 those parts are shortened.

Open 前 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.