Chinese idiom · 成语
永无止境
Meaning
Forever without end; boundless pursuit.
Character by character
Origin and story
Modern literary usageThe expression combines 'forever' with 'no endpoint.' Hàn Diǎn cites Mao Dun's Qinling zhi Ye (秦嶺之夜), where the layers of mountains seem to continue without end. The phrase makes the landscape feel vast to the observer; it is not a mathematical assertion that the mountain range has infinite length.
That modern literary occurrence is an attestation, not evidence that Mao Dun invented the wording. No unique founding anecdote is established by the cited source. In ordinary use, 永无止境 can describe a continuing pursuit, a seemingly endless task, or repeated demands. Its tone depends on context: boundlessness can sound inspiring, exhausting, or simply descriptive.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
如果一直增加要求，这个项目就会变成永无止境的工作。
If we keep adding requirements, this project will become a never-ending task.
Can describe unwelcome endlessness as well as an inspiring pursuit.