DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT
一木難支
简 一木难支 · 繁 一木難支Mandarin · pinyin yī mù nán zhī
Meanings
- lit. a single post cannot prop up a falling house (idiom)
- fig. one is helpless alone
Characters in this entry
Explore the spelling
Mandarin tones
1–4–2–1 · yi1 mu4 nan2 zhi1
Compare attested words with these syllables ↗Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.
Connected dictionary
4character links
Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading
Rime Cantonese 粵拼
jat1 muk6 naan4 zi1
Cantonese word readings for 一木難支. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.
CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack
jat1 muk6 naan4 zi1
Pleco · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Word reading; meanings not aligned.
Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section
Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.
phrase
- (idiomatic) "one post cannot hold a falling structure"; just one person cannot save something doomed to fail
Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack