不进则退

不進則退

bújìnzétuì

idiom #60,008

Meanings

1 if you don't advance, you fall back
2 standing still means regressing

Characters

then (classical)

Examples

学习如逆水行舟，不进则退。

Xuéxí rú nìshuǐ xíngzhōu, bújìnzétuì.

Learning is like rowing upstream — if you don't press forward, you drift back.

在这个行业里，不进则退。

Zài zhège hángyè lǐ, bújìnzétuì.

In this industry, if you're not advancing, you're falling behind.

不进则退的道理，谁都明白。

Bújìnzétuì de dàoli, shéi dōu míngbai.

Everyone understands the principle that not advancing means retreating.

Tips

history

Attested in the pre-Qin philosophical fragment 《邓析子·无厚篇》: 不进则退，不喜则忧，不得则亡 — a Warring States-era Legalist meditation on the binary of motion. The parallel 逆水行舟，不进则退 ('rowing upstream, no advance means retreat') made it into every modern classroom.

grammar

The 则 is a classical conditional: 'if... then...' Pattern: 不A则B = 'if not A, then B.' Other familiar examples: 不破不立 (without destroying, nothing is built), 不鸣则已 (if silent, then silent).

Stroke Order

不 bù

进 jìn

则 zé

退 tuì