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HSK 6
xué学studyér而andbù不notsī思thinkzé则thenwǎng罔bewildered
Studying without reflecting on what you study leaves you confused.

Literal meaning

study (学) — and (而) — not (不) — think (思) — then (则) — bewildered (罔)

Origin

Confucius, Analects (《论语·为政》). The full couplet is: 学而不思则罔，思而不学则殆 — "Learning without thought is bewilderment; thought without learning is danger." The two halves are designed to be read together: rote memorisation alone produces noise without understanding (罔), and pure speculation without grounding in real material produces unstable, untested ideas (殆). Modern Chinese keeps the first half going as a standalone warning against passive cramming.

Examples

Lǎo老shī师cháng常tí提xǐng醒wǒ我men们：xué学ér而bù不sī思zé则wǎng罔，yào要biān边xué学biān边xiǎng想。
The teacher often reminds us: studying without thinking leaves you confused — you have to learn and reflect at the same time.
Tā他shū书dú读le了hěn很duō多，dàn但shì是xué学ér而bù不sī思zé则wǎng罔，lǐ理jiě解de得bù不shēn深。
He's read a lot of books, but learning without reflection leaves you confused — his understanding doesn't go deep.

Usage & nuances

Six characters rather than the usual four, but it functions as a chengyu in modern usage. Comes up in essays about study habits, education reform, and personal-growth writing. Quoting just "学而不思则罔" is more common than the full couplet in casual contexts.

Related chengyu

bàn半jīn斤bā八liǎng两
bǎo饱jīng经cāng沧sāng桑
bó博dà大jīng精shēn深
bó博xué学duō多cái才
bù不chǐ耻xià下wèn问
bù不kě可sī思yì议

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