实事求是

實事求是

shíshì-qiúshì

idiom HSK 7 #30,903

Meanings

1 to seek truth from facts
2 to be practical and realistic

Characters

to seek; to pursue

truth; what is correct

Literally 'from real facts, seek what is true' — determine truth based on evidence, not ideology or wishful thinking.

Examples

做研究要实事求是，不能编造数据。

Zuò yánjiū yào shíshì-qiúshì, bù néng biānzào shùjù.

Research must be based on facts — you can't fabricate data.

我们应该实事求是地分析问题。

Wǒmen yīnggāi shíshì-qiúshì de fēnxī wèntí.

We should analyze problems in a realistic, fact-based way.

Tips

history

This phrase originated from the Han Dynasty text《汉书》(Book of Han). Mao Zedong adopted it as a core political principle in 1941, and Deng Xiaoping made it the ideological foundation of China's Reform and Opening (改革开放). It remains one of the most politically significant phrases in modern China.

Stroke Order

实 shí

事 shì

求 qiú

是 shì