束手无策 shù shǒu wú cè at a loss

Explanation

束手无策，意指遇到问题，就象手被捆住一样，一点办法也没有。形容面对困境毫无办法。

束手无策, meaning that when faced with a problem, it's as if one's hands are tied, without a single way out. It describes a situation where one is helpless in the face of adversity.

Origin Story

在一个古老的村庄里，住着一位勤劳的农民。他每天辛苦耕作，希望能收获丰收。然而，今年的天气十分反常，先是久旱不雨，后来又连降暴雨。农民的庄稼遭受了严重的损失，颗粒无收。他看着一片狼藉的田地，束手无策，不知道该怎么办。他眼看着辛苦一年的心血付诸东流，感到无比沮丧。这时，一位老农看到他愁眉苦脸的样子，走过来安慰他说：“孩子，不要灰心，天灾人祸，谁也无法预料。明年再重新开始，总会好起来的。”农民听了老农的话，心里稍稍平静了一些。他想起自己以前也经历过许多困难，但最终都挺过来了。于是，他振作精神，重新开始耕种。他相信，只要不放弃，总有一天会重新收获丰收。

zài yī gè gǔ lǎo de cūn zhuāng lǐ, zhù zhe yī wèi qín láo de nóng mín. tā měi tiān xīn kǔ gēng zuò, xī wàng néng shōu huò fēng shōu. rán ér, jīn nián de tiān qì shí fèn fǎn cháng, xiān shì jiǔ hàn bù yǔ, hòu lái yòu lián jiàng bào yǔ. nóng mín de zhuāng jiā zāo shòu le yán zhòng de sǔn shī, kē lì wú shōu. tā kàn zhe yī piàn láng jí de tián dì, shù shǒu wú cè, bù zhī gāi zěn me bàn. tā yǎn kàn zhe xīn kǔ yī nián de xīn xuè fù zhū dōng liú, gǎn dào wú bǐ jǔ sàng. zhè shí, yī wèi lǎo nóng kàn dào tā chóu méi kǔ liǎn de yàng zi, zǒu guò lái ān wèi tā shuō: "hái zi, bù yào huī xīn, tiān zāi rén huò, shuí yě wú fǎ yù liáo. míng nián zài chóng xīn kāi shǐ, zǒng huì hǎo qǐ lái de." nóng mín tīng le lǎo nóng de huà, xīn lǐ shāo shāo píng jìng le yī xiē. tā xiǎng qǐ zì jǐ yǐ qián yě jīng lì guò xǔ duō kùn nan, dàn zuì zhōng dōu tǐng guò lái le. yú shì, tā zhèn zhuó jīng shén, chóng xīn kāi shǐ gēng zhòng. tā xiāo xìn, zhǐ yào bù fàng qì, zǒng yǒu yī tiān huì chóng xīn shōu huò fēng shōu.

In an ancient village, there lived a diligent farmer. He worked hard on his field every day, hoping for a bountiful harvest. However, the weather this year was very unusual. First, there was a long drought, followed by heavy rains. The farmer's crops suffered serious losses, and nothing could be saved. He looked at the devastated field and was at a loss, not knowing what to do. He watched as his hard work of a whole year was lost, and he felt very depressed. At that moment, an old farmer saw his sad face and came over to comfort him: "Child, don't be discouraged. Natural disasters and human disasters are unpredictable. Try again next year, it will be fine."

Usage

这个成语常用于形容遇到困难、问题或挑战时，感到无计可施，不知如何解决。

zhè ge chéng yǔ cháng yòng yú xíng róng yù dào kùn nan, wèn tí huò tiǎo zhàn shí, gǎn dào wú jì kě shī, bù zhī rú hé jiě jué.

This idiom is often used to describe being in a situation where you encounter difficulties, problems or challenges, without knowing how to solve them.

Examples

• 面对突如其来的问题，他束手无策，不知如何是好。

  miàn duì tú rú lái de wèn tí, tā shù shǒu wú cè, bù zhī rú hé shì hǎo.

  He was at a loss when faced with the sudden problem, not knowing what to do.

• 面对着这么复杂的局势，我们束手无策，只能眼睁睁地看着事情发展。

  miàn duì zhe zhè me fù zá de jú shì, wǒ men shù shǒu wú cè, zhǐ néng yǎn zhēng zhēng de kàn zhe shì qíng fā zhǎn.

  Faced with such a complex situation, we were helpless and could only watch things unfold.

Related Idioms

• 无能为力

• 一筹莫展

Opposite Idioms

• 得心应手

• 左右逢源

• 急中生智