Addressing climate change cannot be delayed a moment.
Tips
history
From the Song-era 《齐东野语》 by Zhou Mi: a passage arguing that delaying the emperor's enthronement was inappropriate — 「事不容缓」 ('the matter does not allow delay'). The 刻 ('moment') was added later to sharpen the urgency.
usage
Acts like a standalone predicate after a noun phrase: 'X 刻不容缓' = 'X cannot be delayed.' Stronger than 紧急 — asserts action must happen right now.
