CHENGYU
一心一意(yī xīn yī yì)meaning, story and origin
- Register:
- neutral
- Source:
- 《三国志·魏志·杜恕传》裴注
MEANING
- Literal
- one heart, one mind
- Figurative meaning
- wholeheartedly; with complete devotion
ORIGIN STORY
From the Romance of the Three Kingdoms tradition: to serve a lord with a single heart and a single mind, without wavering.
NATURAL EQUIVALENT
“heart and soul”
EXAMPLES
她一心一意想学好汉语。Tā yī xīn yī yì xiǎng xué hǎo hànyǔ.HSK5
She is wholeheartedly devoted to learning Chinese.
他做什么事都很一心一意。Tā zuò shénme shì dōu hěn yī xīn yī yì.HSK5
Whatever he does, he puts his whole heart into it.
COMMON MISTAKE
Watch out: Do not confuse with its direct opposite 三心二意 (half-hearted).
CHARACTER BREAKDOWN
Tap a character to explore it
TRUST & SOURCES
- Reviewed by
- AI-assisted editorial review
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-14
- CC-CEDICT 2026-01-01