不拘一格

Chinese

		not; no	adhere; capture; restrain	one; single; a one; single; a; (before verbs) as soon as, once; (before a noun) entire (family, etc.)	frame; rule
simp. and trad. (不拘一格)		不	拘	一	格

Etymology

First attested in 1801, in Oubei's Notes on Poets and Poetry by Zhao Yi:

七律更無一不完善穩妥，與古詩之奇崛判若兩手，則又其隨物賦形，不拘一格之能事。 [Literary Chinese, trad.]

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七律更无一不完善稳妥，与古诗之奇崛判若两手，则又其随物赋形，不拘一格之能事。 [Literary Chinese, simp.]

From: 1801, 趙翼 (Zhào Yì),《甌北詩話》

Qīlǜ gèng wú yī bù wánshàn wěntuǒ, yǔ gǔshī zhī qíjué pàn ruò liǎng shǒu, zé yòu qí suí wù fù xíng, bù jū yī gé zhī néngshì. [Pinyin]

Regarding seven-character, eight-line regulated verse [written by Han Yu]: Each poem attains perfect balance and refinement, standing in marked contrast to the unconventional ruggedness of ancient-style poetry, which exemplifies his extraordinary talent for adapting form to content, unrestrained by rigid stylistic conventions.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): bùjūyīgé

  (Zhuyin): ㄅㄨˋ ㄐㄩ ㄧ ㄍㄜˊ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): bat¹ keoi¹ jat¹ gaak³

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: bùjūyīgé [Phonetic: bùjūyìgé]
    • Zhuyin: ㄅㄨˋ ㄐㄩ ㄧ ㄍㄜˊ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: bùjyuyigé
    • Wade–Giles: pu⁴-chü¹-i¹-ko²
    • Yale: bù-jyū-yī-gé
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: bujiuiger
    • Palladius: буцзюйигэ (buczjujigɛ)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /pu⁵¹ t͡ɕy⁵⁵ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ kɤ³⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: bat¹ keoi¹ jat¹ gaak³
    • Yale: bāt kēui yāt gaak
    • Cantonese Pinyin: bat⁷ koey¹ jat⁷ gaak⁸
    • Guangdong Romanization: bed¹ kêu¹ yed¹ gag³
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /pɐt̚⁵ kʰɵy̯⁵⁵ jɐt̚⁵ kaːk̚³/

Idiom

不拘一格

1. not stick to one pattern; not limited to one style or stereotype

   • 我勸天公重抖擻，
     不拘一格降人材。 [Literary Chinese, trad.]
     我劝天公重抖擞，
     不拘一格降人材。 [Literary Chinese, simp.]

     From: 1839, 龔自珍 (Gong Zizhen), Poem 125 of《己亥雜詩》(Miscellaneous Poems in the Year of Jihai)

     Wǒ quàn tiāngōng chóng dǒusǒu,
     Bùjūyīgé jiàng réncái. [Pinyin]

     I implore the Celestial Sovereign to bestir his reign,
     Unbound by convention, let talents descend like rain.