How to say "to be completely unrelated to one another (idiom)" in Chinese
风马牛不相及
fēng mǎ niú bù xiāng jí
social · communication · advanced · neutral
When To Use It
"to be completely unrelated to one another (idiom)" maps to 风马牛不相及 (fēng mǎ niú bù xiāng jí), a neutral social phrase for communication situations.
Use it when you need to keep a conversation moving despite a language gap, unclear wording, or missing context.
Practice it first exactly as written, then swap in your own people, places, or objects so it becomes part of your active speaking repertoire.
Tone And Delivery
The register is neutral, which makes it flexible: safe in most daily situations without sounding stiff or overly intimate.
Because this is marked advanced, pay attention to nuance, tone, and whether a simpler phrase might be safer in fast conversation.
A good practice target is the example sentence 风马牛不相及 (fēng mǎ niú bù xiāng jí). Once that feels natural, shorten your pause and try it at conversation speed.
Practice Ideas
This phrase becomes more useful when you learn it as part of a mini-sequence. After saying it, a natural next step could be 唐太宗李卫公问对 (táng tài zōng lǐ wèi gōng wèn duì).
A second nearby phrase to review is 黄石公三略 (huáng shí gōng sān lüè), which helps you stay in the same topic instead of translating from scratch again.
- Read the example “to be completely unrelated to one another (idiom)” aloud, then replace one detail with your own information.
- Pair it with “"Duke Li of Wei Answering Emperor Taizong of Tang", military treatise attributed to Li Jing 李靖[Li3 Jing4] and one of the Seven Military Classics of ancient China 武經七書|武经七书[Wu3 jing1 Qi1 shu1]” next so your conversation does not stop after a single line.
- Match the phrase to your tone of voice: soft for polite requests, flatter and quicker for routine daily use.
- If you hear a slightly different version in the wild, compare the tone and context before treating it as interchangeable.
Examples
风马牛不相及
fēng mǎ niú bù xiāng jí
to be completely unrelated to one another (idiom)
Related
- "Duke Li of Wei Answering Emperor Taizong of Tang", military treatise attributed to Li Jing 李靖[Li3 Jing4] and one of the Seven Military Classics of ancient China 武經七書|武经七书[Wu3 jing1 Qi1 shu1] — 唐太宗李卫公问对 (táng tài zōng lǐ wèi gōng wèn duì)
- "Three Strategies of Huang Shigong", one of the Seven Military Classics of ancient China — 黄石公三略 (huáng shí gōng sān lüè)
- a "screw that never rusts" – metaphor used in CCP propaganda to praise loyal, selfless contributors, famously applied to model worker Lei Feng 雷鋒|雷锋[Lei2 Feng1] — 永不生锈的螺丝钉 (yǒng bù shēng xiù de luó sī dīng)
- a hero with no chance of using his might — 英雄无用武之地 (yīng xióng wú yòng wǔ zhī dì)
Explore more phrases on the How to say index or try the Chinese Name Generator.
Phrase FAQ
How do you say "to be completely unrelated to one another (idiom)" in Chinese?
风马牛不相及 (fēng mǎ niú bù xiāng jí).
When should I use this phrase?
Use it in communication situations where a neutral tone fits. Because it is tagged advanced, it is meant to be practical and reusable rather than literary or highly specialized.
Is pronunciation included?
Yes. Every phrase page includes pinyin with tone marks, plus example sentences so you can hear how the wording expands in real use.
What should I learn next after this phrase?
A useful follow-up is 唐太宗李卫公问对 (táng tài zōng lǐ wèi gōng wèn duì) — ""Duke Li of Wei Answering Emperor Taizong of Tang", military treatise attributed to Li Jing 李靖[Li3 Jing4] and one of the Seven Military Classics of ancient China 武經七書|武经七书[Wu3 jing1 Qi1 shu1]". Studying connected phrases in small clusters makes them easier to recall in conversation.