一言既出，驷马难追 yī yán jì chū ， sì mǎ nán zhuī

keep your word; can't take words back

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency Unknown

Definitions

  1. 1. lit. once said, a team of horses cannot unsay it (idiom); a promise must be kept

Characters

Character Meaning
一 yī HSK 1
one; 1; single
言 yán HSK 4
to say; to talk; speech
既 jì HSK 4
already; since; both... (and...)
出 chū HSK 1
to go out; to come out
驷 sì
team of 4 horses
马 mǎ HSK 3
horse; surname Ma
难 nán HSK 3
difficult; difficult (to...); difficulty
追 zhuī HSK 5
to chase after; to seek