无所事事

Pronunciation: wú suǒ shì shì Literal meaning: Nothing to do as occupation

Origin & Usage

There is nothing (无所) one is occupied with (事事). The doubling is grammatical rather than emphatic: the first 事 is the verb, to attend to, and the second is the noun, business — so the phrase is 'attending to no business' rather than a repetition. The Shiji uses the same construction of Cao Shen, who as chancellor 不事事, did not attend to the duties of the office. Chinese is not kind about it: the register is critical, and the person is understood to have the time and to be wasting it. It is distinct from resting, which is legitimate and named differently, and it is among the likeliest things a Chinese parent will say to an adult child at home.

Examples

English: "After retirement, he felt aimless with nothing to occupy his time."

Chinese: 退休后，他无所事事，感到很迷茫。