三番五次

sānfān-wǔcì

idiom HSK 7-9 #58,798

Meanings

1 over and over again
2 time and again
3 repeatedly

Characters

time; occurrence

Literally 'three turns, five times' - emphasizes repeated occurrences

Examples

我三番五次地提醒他，他还是忘了。

Wǒ sānfān-wǔcì de tíxǐng tā, tā háishì wàng le.

I reminded him over and over again, but he still forgot.

她三番五次地迟到，老板很不满。

Tā sānfān-wǔcì de chídào, lǎobǎn hěn bùmǎn.

She was late time and again, and the boss was very unhappy.

Tips

usage

三番五次 usually carries a tone of frustration or annoyance - it implies the repetition is unwelcome. Compare with 反复 (fǎnfù, repeatedly), which is neutral.

memory

3 turns + 5 times = 8 total attempts - way too many! The exaggerated numbers convey the speaker's exasperation.

Stroke Order

三 sān

番 fān

五 wǔ

次 cì