無所不至

Chinese

		not have	actually; place; (nominalization prefix)	not; no	arrive; most; to arrive; most; to; until
trad. (無所不至)		無	所	不	至
simp. (无所不至)		无	所	不	至

Etymology

From the Analects, Book 17 (《論語·陽貨》):

子曰：「鄙夫！可與事君也與哉？其未得之也，患得之；既得之，患失之。苟患失之，無所不至矣。」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]

子曰：「鄙夫！可与事君也与哉？其未得之也，患得之；既得之，患失之。苟患失之，无所不至矣。」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

Zǐyuē: “Bǐ fū! Kě yǔ shì jūn yě yǔ zāi? Qí wèi dé zhī yě, huàn dé zhī; jì dé zhī, huàn shī zhī. Gǒu huàn shī zhī, wú suǒ bù zhì yǐ.” [Pinyin]

The Master said, "There are those mean creatures! How impossible it is along with them to serve one's prince! While they have not got their aims, their anxiety is how to get them. When they have got them, their anxiety is lest they should lose them. When they are anxious lest such things should be lost, there is nothing to which they will not proceed."

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Pinyin): wúsuǒbùzhì

(Zhuyin): ㄨˊ ㄙㄨㄛˇ ㄅㄨˋ ㄓˋ
Cantonese (Jyutping): mou⁴ so² bat¹ zi³
Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): bû-só͘-put-chì

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: wúsuǒbùzhì [Phonetic: wúsuǒbúzhì]
  - Zhuyin: ㄨˊ ㄙㄨㄛˇ ㄅㄨˋ ㄓˋ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: wúsuǒbùjhìh
  - Wade–Giles: wu²-so³-pu⁴-chih⁴
  - Yale: wú-swǒ-bù-jr̀
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: wusuoobujyh
  - Palladius: усобучжи (usobučži)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /u³⁵ su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵¹/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
  - Jyutping: mou⁴ so² bat¹ zi³
  - Yale: mòuh só bāt ji
  - Cantonese Pinyin: mou⁴ so² bat⁷ dzi³
  - Guangdong Romanization: mou⁴ so² bed¹ ji³
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /mou̯²¹ sɔː³⁵ pɐt̚⁵ t͡siː³³/
Southern Min
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: bû-só͘-put-chì
  - Tâi-lô: bû-sóo-put-tsì
  - Phofsit Daibuun: busofputcix
  - IPA (Taipei): /bu²⁴⁻¹¹ sɔ⁵³⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁴ t͡si¹¹/
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /bu²³⁻³³ sɔ⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁴ t͡si²¹/
  - IPA (Xiamen): /bu²⁴⁻²² sɔ⁵³⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁴ t͡si²¹/

Idiom

無所不至

to penetrate everywhere
to spare no pains (to do evil); to be capable of anything; to stop at nothing
- 今天下之人，惡介甫之甚者，其詆毀無所不至，光獨知其不然。介甫固大賢，其失在於用心太過，自信太厚而已。 [Literary Chinese, trad.]
  今天下之人，恶介甫之甚者，其诋毁无所不至，光独知其不然。介甫固大贤，其失在于用心太过，自信太厚而已。 [Literary Chinese, simp.]
  From: 1070 April 10, 司馬光 (Sima Guang),《與王介甫書》, translation based on Chu Chiyu & D. E. Pollard's work
  Jīn tiānxià zhī rén, wù Jièfǔ zhī shèn zhě, qí dǐhuǐ wúsuǒbùzhì, Guāng dú zhī qí bùrán. Jièfǔ gù dàxián, qí shī zàiyú yòngxīn tàiguò, zìxìn tài hòu éryǐ. [Pinyin]
  Today people over the whole country detest you to the point that they defame you in every respect. I, however, know they are wrong. You are a man of great worth. You have the defect of being too ambitious and too self-confident, that is all.

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (無所不至):

→ Korean: 무소부지(無所不至) (musobuji)