忍无可忍

Pronunciation: rěn wú kě rěn Literal meaning: Endure without possibility of enduring

Origin & Usage

To have borne it (忍) until there is nothing (无) further that can (可) be borne (忍). The repetition of 忍 is the whole structure, and it does something careful: it establishes that the person did endure, at length, before the sentence turned. That is why it works as a justification rather than an outburst — it is what somebody says to explain why they finally acted, and Chinese, which rates forbearance highly, accepts it as one.

Examples

English: "After repeated offenses, his patience finally ran out."

Chinese: 在反复冒犯后，他终于忍无可忍。