📖 Meaning
Not understanding the reason why something is the case. It describes a state of being puzzled or bewildered about the cause of an event. The phrase conveys a sense of confusion when one cannot figure out why something has happened.
📜 Origin Story
This phrase originates from the Tang dynasty work 'Fa Shu Yao Lu' (Records of Calligraphy) by Zhang Yanyuan, specifically in the chapter 'Gu Lan Ting Xu' (Purchasing the Lanting Preface). The passage recounts the story of Emperor Taizong of Tang, who coveted Wang Xizhi's masterpiece calligraphy 'Lanting Xu' (Preface to the Orchid Pavilion). When the monk holding the scroll was suddenly confronted, the text describes him as 'not knowing the reason why' he was being pursued. The phrase has since come to describe anyone who is at a loss to explain or understand why something has occurred.
💡 Example Usage
听到这个突如其来的消息，他一时不知所以，愣在了原地。
Hearing this sudden news, he was momentarily bewildered and could not figure out why, frozen where he stood.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 不知所以
- Pinyin: bù zhī suǒ yǐ
- Literal Translation: not, know, the, reason
- Category: Knowledge
- Characters: 4