一问三不知

一問三不知

yīwènsānbùzhī

idiom

Meanings

1 to reply 'don't know' to every question
2 to be completely in the dark; to know nothing about something

Characters

Examples

问他公司的情况，他一问三不知。

Wèn tā gōngsī de qíngkuàng, tā yīwènsānbùzhī.

Ask him about the company's situation and he doesn't know a thing.

这件事我刚来没几天，一问三不知，请别问我。

Zhè jiàn shì wǒ gāng lái méi jǐ tiān, yīwènsānbùzhī, qǐng bié wèn wǒ.

I just arrived a few days ago and don't know anything about this — please don't ask me.

Tips

history

From 《左传·哀公二十七年》: 君子之谋也，始、衷、终皆举之 — a noble's planning considers beginning, middle, and end. The 三 ('three') refers to these three stages: not knowing any of the three means total ignorance.

usage

Often used as polite self-deprecation ('I really don't know anything about this') or to criticize someone uninformed but in a position to know. Frequently follows 问 + 他/她.

Stroke Order

一 yī

问 wèn

三 sān

不 bù

知 zhī