Chinese idiom · 成语
依依不舍
Meaning
Lingering reluctance to part; tender farewell.
Character by character
Origin and story
Literary usageThis expression names the feeling of lingering attachment that makes parting difficult. A documented use appears in The Scholars (儒林外史), chapter 15: Kuang Chaoren is reluctant to leave, but urgently wants to return home to see his father, so he takes a tearful farewell. In Dream of the Red Chamber, chapter 119, Qiaojie and her companions have grown accustomed to Granny Liu's home and feel similarly reluctant to depart.
These literary scenes show the phrase at work; they do not prove that either novelist first coined it. 依依 evokes attachment and 不舍 the unwillingness to let go. The idiom can describe affection for people or attachment to a place and a shared experience.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
假期结束时，孩子们依依不舍地和爷爷奶奶告别。
At the end of the holiday, the children were reluctant to say goodbye to their grandparents.
For an affectionate, lingering farewell, rather than refusal to perform an ordinary task.