先天不足

xiāntiānbùzú

idiom #55,741

Meanings

1 congenitally deficient
2 having an inherent weakness from birth
3 (figurative) fundamentally flawed from the start

Characters

enough; sufficient

Examples

这个孩子先天不足，体质比较弱。

Zhège háizi xiāntiānbùzú, tǐzhì bǐjiào ruò.

This child was born with a weak constitution.

这个项目先天不足，后期再怎么努力也难成功。

Zhège xiàngmù xiāntiānbùzú, hòuqī zài zěnme nǔlì yě nán chénggōng.

This project was flawed from the outset — no matter how hard we work later, it'll be hard to succeed.

Tips

history

From Li Ruzhen's 《镜花缘》 (Flowers in the Mirror, Qing dynasty), chapter 26: 「老人之子，先天不足」 — 'children of the elderly suffer congenital deficiency.' 先天 ('before heaven/before birth') contrasts with 后天 ('after birth, acquired').

usage

Works both for people (health, constitution) and for projects, plans, or companies with structural flaws — a common business-writing phrase.

Stroke Order

先 xiān

天 tiān

不 bù

足 zú