諺語 · a single proverb
不恥下問
Simplified: 不耻下问
What does 不恥下問 (bù chǐ xià wèn) mean?
不恥下問 (bù chǐ xià wèn) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "not ashamed to ask those below." In use it means: A person of true learning is not embarrassed to seek knowledge from those of lesser rank or experience. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Earth note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Ox.
Literally: "not ashamed to ask those below."
The reading
Pride costs more than ignorance. The person who cannot ask a junior colleague, a young student, a stranger on the road-that person stops learning the moment they stop being the youngest person in the room. Knowledge does not care about rank. It goes to whoever is willing to receive it.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Analects 論語, Book 5 (Gongye Chang 公冶長)
Sits beside
Keep reading
Return to the Proverb Pond to draw another of the eighty-seven, or hear one read aloud. Read the rest of its chapter in Wisdom & Learning, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Ox, Year of the Frog, and Year of the Rat.
Questions
Is 不恥下問 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 不恥下問 (bù chǐ xià wèn) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from Analects 論語, Book 5 (Gongye Chang 公冶長). It is living Chinese heritage, given here with per-character pinyin and its source so you can trust the line, not a phrase invented in English.
How do you pronounce 不恥下問?
In Mandarin it is bù chǐ xià wèn. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 不恥下問 aloud in Mandarin.