独行独断 dúxíng dúduàn act independently, decide arbitrarily

Explanation

指做事专断，不考虑别人的意见。形容作风不民主。

means acting arbitrarily without considering the opinions of others. It describes an undemocratic style.

Origin Story

话说唐朝时期，一位名叫李白的著名诗人，因其才华横溢，恃才傲物，常独行独断，不拘小节。一次，他受邀参加一位权贵府上的宴会。席间，这位权贵炫耀自己的收藏，拿出珍贵的古董让大家欣赏。李白却漫不经心地品着酒，对古董不闻不问。权贵有些不悦，于是故意刁难李白，问他一个难题。李白不假思索，脱口而出答案，令权贵哑口无言。然而，李白在解释答案的过程中，言语轻率，得罪了在场的其他宾客。权贵更加恼怒，想要惩罚李白。但想到李白的才名，又犹豫不决。最终，李白拂袖而去，留下众人一片议论纷纷。后人便用“独行独断”来形容李白这种恃才傲物，不考虑他人感受的行为。

huì shuō táng cháo shíqī, yī wèi míng jiào lǐ bái de zhùmíng shī rén, yīn qí cái huá héngyí, shì cái ào wù, cháng dúxíng dúduàn, bù jū xiǎo jié. yī cì, tā shòu yāo cānjiā yī wèi quán guì fǔ shàng de yánhuì. xí jiān, zhè wèi quán guì xuànyào zìjǐ de shōucáng, ná chū zhēnguì de gǔdǒng ràng dàjiā xīn shǎng. lǐ bái què màn bù jīngxīn de pǐn zhe jiǔ, duì gǔdǒng bù wén bù wèn. quán guì yǒu xiē bù yuè, yúshì gùyì diāonán lǐ bái, wèn tā yīgè nántí. lǐ bái bù jiǎ sī suǒ, tuō kǒu ér chū dá'àn, lìng quán guì yǎkǒu wú yán. rán'ér, lǐ bái zài jiěshì dá'àn de guòchéng zhōng, yányǔ qīngshuài, dézuì le zài chǎng de qítā bīnkè. quán guì gèngjiā nǎonù, xiǎng yào chéngfá lǐ bái. dàn xiǎng dào lǐ bái de cáimíng, yòu yóuyù bù jué. zuìzhōng, lǐ bái fú xiù ér qù, liúxià zhòngrén yī piàn yìlùn fēnfēn. hòurén biàn yòng "dúxíng dúduàn" lái xíngróng lǐ bái zhè zhǒng shì cái ào wù, bù kǎolǜ tā rén gǎnshòu de xíngwéi.

In the Tang Dynasty, there was a famous poet named Li Bai. Because of his extraordinary talent, he was arrogant and often acted independently without considering others' feelings. Once, he was invited to a banquet at a powerful nobleman's house. During the banquet, the nobleman showed off his collection of precious antiques. Li Bai casually sipped his wine, ignoring the antiques. The nobleman was displeased and deliberately tried to embarrass Li Bai with a difficult question. Li Bai answered without hesitation, leaving the nobleman speechless. However, in explaining his answer, Li Bai was careless with his words, offending the other guests. The nobleman became even more angry and wanted to punish Li Bai but hesitated because of Li Bai's reputation. In the end, Li Bai left angrily, leaving the guests buzzing with discussion. "独行独断" is used to describe Li Bai's arrogant and inconsiderate behavior.

Usage

多用于批评或讽刺他人行事专断，不考虑别人的意见。

duō yòng yú pīpíng huò fěngcì tārén xíngshì zhuānduàn, bù kǎolǜ biérén de yìjiàn

Mostly used to criticize or satirize someone who acts arbitrarily without considering the opinions of others.

Examples

• 他总是独行独断，不听取别人的意见。

  tā zǒngshì dúxíng dúduàn, bù tīngqǔ biérén de yìjiàn

  He always acts independently and does not listen to the opinions of others.

• 这个项目是他独行独断的结果，导致了严重的失败。

  zhège xiàngmù shì tā dúxíng dúduàn de jiéguǒ, dǎozhì le yánzhòng de shībài

  This project was the result of his unilateral actions, leading to a serious failure.

• 领导风格独行独断，团队士气低落。

  lǐngdǎo fēnggé dúxíng dúduàn, tuánduì shìqì dīluò

  The leadership style is autocratic, team morale is low

Related Idioms

• 独断专行

• 专横跋扈

Opposite Idioms

• 民主

• 协商