身不由己

Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word 身不由己. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word 身不由己, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say 身不由己 in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word 身不由己 you have here. The definition of the word 身不由己 will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of身不由己, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.

Chinese

body; torso; person
body; torso; person; life; status; pregnancy; (a measure word used for clothes) suit
 
not; no
follow; from; it is for...to
follow; from; it is for...to; reason; cause; because of; due to; by; to; to leave it (to sb)
 
6th heavenly stem; self
trad. (身不由己)
simp. #(身不由己)

Etymology

From the Southern drama play 張協狀元 "Top Graduate Zhang Xie", included in the Yongle Encyclopedia:

不由己爹媽家鄉未知 [Written Vernacular Chinese, trad.]
不由己爹妈家乡未知 [Written Vernacular Chinese, simp.]
Shìzé wúqī wǒ shēnbùyóujǐ, xū yǒu diēmā zài jiāxiāng yóu wèizhī.
Although I have no wife, I have no choice in this matter; father and mother are back home and still do not know.

Pronunciation


Idiom

身不由己

  1. to be unable to determine for oneself; to be involuntary

Derived terms

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (身不由己):