烂泥扶不上墙

爛泥扶不上牆

lànnífúbushàngqiáng

idiom

Meanings

1 mud that can't be propped up against a wall — useless; hopeless; beyond help
2 (of a person) too inept to be made into anything

Characters

to prop up; support

(negation; potential complement)

Examples

我教了他这么久，真是烂泥扶不上墙。

Wǒ jiāole tā zhème jiǔ, zhēnshi lànnífúbushàngqiáng.

I've taught him for so long — he really is beyond help.

这孩子烂泥扶不上墙，怎么劝都不学好。

Zhè háizi lànnífúbushàngqiáng, zěnme quàn dōu bù xuéhǎo.

This kid is hopeless — no amount of advice gets him to shape up.

Tips

usage

A 俗语 (súyǔ, common saying), not a formal four-character chengyu. Strongly insulting — used by frustrated teachers, parents, or bosses about someone who cannot be improved no matter how much support they're given. The image: trying to plaster wet mud onto a wall — it just slides off.

register

Colloquial and harsh. Don't use it lightly to or about people you respect. Compare with 朽木不可雕 (xiǔ mù bùkě diāo, 'rotten wood cannot be carved') — same meaning, more literary.

Stroke Order

烂 làn

泥 ní

扶 fú

不 bù

上 shàng

墙 qiáng