Definition
无米之炊 is a four-character idiom (成语) that literally means 'a meal cooked without rice'. It describes a task that is impossible to complete because the necessary resources or conditions are absent — like being asked to cook without ingredients. You use it to highlight that something cannot be done without basic prerequisites.
idiom
a task impossible to accomplish due to lack of essential resourcesto make bricks without straw
Examples
- ，无米之炊。Méiyǒu zījīn, zhège xiàngmù jiù shì mó.Without funding, this project is like cooking a meal without rice.
- ，无米之炊。Nǐ ràng wǒ yì tiān xiě wán bàogào, jiǎnzhí shì mó.Asking me to finish the report in one day is like making bricks without straw.
- ，无米之炊。Méiyǒu shùjù, zuò fēnxī jiù shì mó.Without data, doing analysis is an impossible task.
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