一毛不拔

yīmáo-bùbá

idiom HSK 7

Meanings

1 extremely stingy; miserly
2 unwilling to give up even a hair

Characters

Literally 'won't pull out a single hair' — so stingy they wouldn't part with even one strand of hair.

Examples

他那么有钱，却一毛不拔。

Tā nàme yǒuqián, què yīmáo-bùbá.

He's so rich, yet he's incredibly stingy.

别指望他请客，他一毛不拔。

Bié zhǐwàng tā qǐngkè, tā yīmáo-bùbá.

Don't expect him to treat you, he's a total cheapskate.

做人不能一毛不拔。

Zuòrén bù néng yīmáo-bùbá.

You can't go through life being so stingy.

Tips

history

This idiom comes from the philosopher Mencius (孟子), who criticized the thinker Yang Zhu (杨朱) for extreme individualism. Mencius said: 杨子取为我，拔一毛而利天下，不为也 — 'Yang Zhu wouldn't pull out a single hair even if it would benefit the whole world.' Over 2,000 years later, it's still the go-to insult for cheap people.

usage

In modern slang, 铁公鸡 (tiěgōngjī, 'iron rooster') means the same thing — a rooster so cheap you can't pluck a single feather. Both are playful insults used among friends.

Stroke Order

一 yī

毛 máo

不 bù

拔 bá