雷打不动 (léi dǎ bù dòng) — unshakable; inviolable; completely fixed (of arrangements, decisions, habits)

Definition

Idiom meaning 'completely fixed, unchangeable' — used for routines, rules, or arrangements that nothing can alter. Always describes the thing being fixed, never the person.

idiom
unshakableinviolablecompletely fixed (of arrangements, decisions, habits)

Examples

  • ，雷打不动。
    Zhè ge huì yì měi zhōu yī jǔ xíng, shì léi dǎ bù dòng de ān pái.
    This meeting is held every Monday — it's an inviolable arrangement.
  • ，雷打不动。
    Tā měi tiān zǎo qǐ pǎo bù, léi dǎ bù dòng de guī ju shuí yě bù néng gǎi.
    He goes running every morning — it's an unshakable rule that no one can change.
  • ，雷打不动。
    Mǔ qīn shuō le, zhè ge jiā guī shì léi dǎ bù dòng de.
    Mother said this family rule is unyielding.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
雨雨yǔrain
Sound part声符shēngfú
畾
畾léi雷léi
Same sound today

The top 雨 (rain) points to the meaning, and the bottom 畾 gives the sound.

Open 雷 →

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
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
丁
丁dīng打dǎ
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

打 uses 扌, a hand, to show an action done with the hand, and 丁 to give the sound.

Open 打 →

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 →

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 動; 动 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
力力lìstrength
Sound part声符shēngfú
重
重zhòng動dòng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 動 uses 力 (strength) and 重 as a sound part; 重 refers to a heavy bag ready to be moved by a human. This note is about 動, not 动.

Open 动 →

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