归根究柢 Guī gēn jiū dǐ In the final analysis

Explanation

追究事情的根底，弄清事情的真相。

To trace the roots of a matter, to get to the bottom of things.

Origin Story

在一个古老的村庄里，住着一位德高望重的智者。一天，村里发生了一件奇怪的事情：村长的宝贝金碗不见了。村民们人心惶惶，纷纷猜测小偷是谁。智者并没有盲目猜测，而是耐心地询问每一个人，收集各种线索。他从村长家开始，一步步追问，询问每一个与村长家有过接触的人，了解他们的行动轨迹。他发现村长家的门锁并没有被破坏，而一个经常出入村长家的年轻人在案发当天恰巧外出，并且有不在场的证据。智者并没有因此就停止调查，他继续追问，最后发现，原来金碗是村长自己不小心弄丢的，放在了一个不显眼的地方。虽然村长不愿意承认，但证据确凿，最终真相大白。村民们这才明白，智者之所以能找到真相，是因为他坚持归根究底，不放过任何细节，最终找到了事情的真相。

zài yīgè gǔlǎo de cūnzhāng lǐ, zhù zhe yī wèi dégāo wàngzhòng de zhìzhě. yītiān, cūn lǐ fāshēng le yī jiàn qíguài de shìqíng: cūnzhǎng de bàobèi jīn wǎn bùjiàn le. cūnmínmen rénxīn huánghuáng, fēnfēn cāicè xiǎotōu shì shuí. zhìzhě bìng méiyǒu mángmù cāicè, ér shì nàixīn de xúnwèn měi yīgè rén, shōují gèzhǒng xiànsuǒ. tā cóng cūnzhǎng jiā kāishǐ, yībù bù zhuīwèn, xúnwèn měi yīgè yǔ cūnzhǎng jiā yǒuguò jiēchù de rén, liǎojiě tāmen de xíngdòng guǐjì. tā fāxiàn cūnzhǎng jiā de mén suǒ bìng méiyǒu bèi pòhuài, ér yīgè chángcháng chūrù cūnzhǎng jiā de niánqīng rén zài ànfā dāngtiān qiàqiǎo wàichū, bìngqiě yǒu bùzàichǎng de zhèngjù. zhìzhě bìng méiyǒu yīncǐ jiù tíngzhǐ diàochá, tā jìxù zhuīwèn, zuìhòu fāxiàn, yuánlái jīn wǎn shì cūnzhǎng zìjǐ bù xiǎoxīn nòng diū le, fàng zài le yīgè bù xiǎnyǎn de dìfāng. suīrán cūnzhǎng bù yuànyì chéngrèn, dàn zhèngjù quèzá, zuìzhōng zhēnxiàng dàibái. cūnmínmen cái zhīdào, zhìzhě zhīsuǒyǐ néng zhǎodào zhēnxiàng, shì yīnwèi tā jiānchí guīgēn jiūdǐ, bù fàngguò rènhé xìjié, zuìzhōng zhǎodào le shìqíng de zhēnxiàng.

In an ancient village, there lived a wise elder respected by all. One day, something strange happened: the village head's precious golden bowl disappeared. The villagers were in a panic, speculating about who the thief might be. The wise elder did not jump to conclusions but patiently questioned everyone, gathering clues. Starting from the head's house, he meticulously asked every person who had contact with the house, understanding their movements that day. He discovered that the head's door lock hadn't been broken, and a young man who frequently visited the head was coincidentally out of the village that day and had an alibi. The elder didn't stop there, he continued to ask questions and finally discovered that the head had accidentally misplaced the bowl in an inconspicuous place. Though the head was reluctant to admit it, the evidence was clear, and the truth prevailed. The villagers then understood that the elder found the truth because he was thorough, not overlooking any details.

Usage

用于分析问题，追根溯源，找出事情的根本原因。

yòng yú fēnxī wèntí, zhuīgēn sùyuán, zhǎochū shìqíng de gēnběn yuányīn

Used to analyze problems, trace the source, and find the root cause of things.

Examples

• 最终，我们找到了问题的根源，归根究柢，还是管理制度出了问题。

  zuìzhōng, wǒmen zhǎodào le wèntí de gēnyuán, guīgēn jiūdǐ, háishì guǎnlǐ zhìdù chū le wèntí

  Ultimately, we found the root cause of the problem; it all boils down to a problem with the management system.

• 这件事归根究柢，都是因为他的粗心大意。

  zhè jiàn shì guīgēn jiūdǐ, dōu shì yīnwèi tā de cūxīn dàyì

  At the root of it all, it was his carelessness.

• 经过一番调查，事情归根究柢，原来是一个误会。

  jīngguò yīfān diàochá, shìqíng guīgēn jiūdǐ, yuánlái shì yīgè wùhuì

  After an investigation, it turned out to be a misunderstanding

Related Idioms

• 追根究底

• 寻根究底

• 水落石出

Opposite Idioms

• 浮光掠影

• 浅尝辄止