Chinese idiom · 成语
莫衷一是
Meaning
No consensus reached; conflicting opinions.
Character by character
Origin and story
Literary usageA documented use appears in Huang Xiexun's Qing miscellany Chu Jing Shu She Ling Mo, in a discussion of the word 落英 in Li Sao. The poem speaks of eating autumn chrysanthemums, but commentators disagree about exactly what the wording means. Huang describes their competing explanations as 莫衷一是: they cannot settle on one accepted interpretation.
The Ministry of Education dictionary cautiously offers this passage as a possible source, not a securely established first occurrence. It is an apt setting for the expression's enduring meaning: several people or schools of thought advance different views, but no common conclusion emerges.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
关于这张老照片的拍摄地点，家里人莫衷一是。
The family cannot agree on where this old photograph was taken.
Usually involves differing views among multiple people, not simply one person's indecision.