一尘不染

一塵不染

yīchén-bùrǎn

idiom #25,653

Meanings

1 spotlessly clean
2 untainted by even a speck of dust
3 (of a person) honest and incorruptible

Characters

to dye; to taint; to contaminate

Examples

她把房间打扫得一尘不染。

Tā bǎ fángjiān dǎsǎo de yīchén-bùrǎn.

She cleaned the room until it was spotlessly clean.

他为官一生，一尘不染，从不受贿。

Tā wéi guān yīshēng, yīchén-bùrǎn, cóngbù shòuhuì.

He served as an official his whole life, completely incorruptible and never accepting bribes.

寺庙经过清洁，一尘不染，宁静庄严。

Sìmiào jīngguò qīngjié, yīchén-bùrǎn, níngjìng zhuāngyán.

The temple, after cleaning, was spotlessly clean and serenely solemn.

Tips

memory

一尘不染 = not a single speck of dust. In Buddhism, 尘 (dust) symbolizes worldly desires and corruption. To be 一尘不染 is to be untouched by even the tiniest impurity, physically or morally.

Stroke Order

一 yī

尘 chén

不 bù

染 rǎn