无缘无故

無緣無故

wúyuán-wúgù

idiom #8,481

Meanings

1 for no reason; without cause
2 out of the blue; unprovoked

Characters

cause; reason; fate

reason; cause; incident

No cause + no reason — a doubled structure emphasizing the complete absence of any reason

Examples

他无缘无故地发了一顿脾气。

Tā wúyuánwúgù de fā le yī dùn píqi.

He lost his temper for no reason at all.

她无缘无故被解雇了。

Tā wúyuánwúgù bèi jiěgù le.

She was fired for no reason.

谁会无缘无故帮助一个陌生人？

Shéi huì wúyuánwúgù bāngzhù yīge mòshēngrén?

Who would help a stranger for no reason?

Tips

grammar

无缘无故 follows the ABAC pattern (无X无Y) common in Chinese idioms: 无忧无虑 (carefree), 无声无息 (silent), 无边无际 (boundless). It functions as an adverb, often with 地: 无缘无故地 + verb.

Stroke Order

无 wú

缘 yuán

故 gù