责无旁贷
zé wú páng dài
a duty one cannot shirk or pass to others
Character by character
责zé
duty
duty
无wú
no
no
旁páng
others
others
贷dài
shift
shift
Example
保护孩子的安全，学校和家长都责无旁贷。
Keeping children safe is a duty that neither schools nor parents can shirk.
Tone: positive (praise).
Usage and origin
旁 is others and 贷 here means to shift a duty onto someone, not a loan. Usually a predicate after the people concerned (我们责无旁贷) or an adverbial (责无旁贷地承担起…); formal and earnest. Avoid ×责无旁贷的责任, which says “duty” twice.
Learn this in Lesson 142 · HSK 7–9: 追尾以后 (After a bump)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
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