諺語 · a single proverb
一籌莫展
Simplified: 一筹莫展
What does 一籌莫展 (yī chóu mò zhǎn) mean?
一籌莫展 (yī chóu mò zhǎn) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "not a single strategy can be deployed." In use it means: Completely stuck with no solution in sight; every approach has been tried and failed. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Metal note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Rat.
Literally: "not a single strategy can be deployed."
The reading
Every tool in the box has been tried. Every angle has been tested. The wall is still a wall. This is the moment most people give up, and it is also the moment just before the solution appears, because the mind that has exhausted every obvious path is finally ready to see the non-obvious one. Stay in the room five minutes longer than you want to.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Common literary expression; appears in Song-Yuan texts
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 Adversity & Resilience, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Rat, Year of the Ox, and Year of the Tiger.
Questions
Is 一籌莫展 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 一籌莫展 (yī chóu mò zhǎn) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from Common literary expression; appears in Song-Yuan texts. 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 一籌莫展?
In Mandarin it is yī chóu mò zhǎn. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 一籌莫展 aloud in Mandarin.