Chinese idiom · 成语
举世无双
Meaning
Unmatched in the world; peerless.
Character by character
Origin and story
Literary usageThe expression combines ju shi, the whole world, with wu shuang, having no equal or counterpart. A documented example occurs in chapter 70 of Yinglie zhuan, where verse invokes the claim of being peerless. This establishes literary use of the exact expression, without identifying a single person or event that first produced it.
Its force comes from extending the comparison as widely as possible: nowhere can a second example match this one. The phrase may praise exceptional skill or describe something extraordinarily rare. In ordinary conversation it is often emphatic admiration rather than a claim based on a literal survey of everything in the world.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
在孩子眼里，奶奶做的红烧肉举世无双，谁也比不上。
In the children's eyes, Grandma's braised pork is the best in the world—nobody can match it.
Strong praise; the personal viewpoint here makes the affectionate exaggeration clear.