一发不可收拾

一發不可收拾
yìfā bùkě-shōushí
idiom

Meanings

  1. 1 once started, it gets out of hand
  2. 2 to become unstoppable

Examples

HSK 6
Tā qǐchū zhǐshì ǒu'ěr wán yóuxì, hòulái yìfā bùkě-shōushí.
At first he only played games now and then, but later it got completely out of hand.
HSK 7-9
Tā sānshí suì cái kāishǐ xiě xiǎoshuō, shéizhī yìfā bùkě-shōushí, shí nián xiě le bā běn.
She only started writing novels at thirty, and then, who knew, she could not stop: eight books in ten years.

Tips

usage
Used both for trouble that spirals, such as a quarrel, a fire or a market panic, and for a passion or creative streak that takes off. 一发 "once set off" is the trigger and 不可收拾 "beyond control" is the result.

Stroke Order

一 yī
发 fā
不 bù
可 kě
收 shōu
拾 shí