青红皂白 (qīng hóng zào bái) — right and wrong, the facts of a matter (used in the phrase 不分青红皂白)

Definition

A set idiom meaning 'right and wrong, the facts of a matter' — almost always used in the fixed phrase 不分青红皂白 ('without distinguishing right from wrong, indiscriminately').

idiom
right and wrongthe facts of a matter (used in the phrase 不分青红皂白)

Examples

  • ，青红皂白。
    Tā gēn běn bú wèn yuán yīn, bù fēn qīng hóng zào bái jiù bǎ wǒ pī píng le yí dùn.
    He didn't even ask the reason and criticized me without checking the facts.
  • ，青红皂白。
    Zuò wéi lǐng dǎo, chǔ lǐ wèn tí bù néng bù fēn qīng hóng zào bái.
    As a leader, you can't handle problems without distinguishing right from wrong.
  • ，青红皂白。
    Tā tīng le bié rén de yí miàn zhī cí, bù fēn qīng hóng zào bái jiù bǎ zé rèn tuī gěi le wǒ.
    He listened to one side of the story and shifted the blame to me without checking the facts.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

青红blue/red
青qīngblue/black红hóngred
联合Side by side
皂白black/white
皂zàoblack白báiwhite
联合Side by side

“青红” and “皂白” list colors, with black and white standing for right and wrong.

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.

An early form of 青 combined 生 and 井, both used for sound; the modern form has changed.

Open 青 →

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 紅; 红 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìsilk
Sound part声符shēngfú
工
工gōng紅hóng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 紅 puts 糸 (silk) next to 工, which gives the sound; the simplified 红 is a later shorthand.

Open 红 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 皂 →

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

白 is thought to picture either an acorn or a human head.

Open 白 →

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