# 一语道破

yī yǔ dào pò

Reveal the essential point in one concise remark

## Meaning & wording

**Literally:** Explain it clearly with one utterance

**Traditional Chinese:** 一語道破

**Register:** General · spoken & written

[Effort & growth](https://chinese-idioms.yudis.dev/idioms/topics/effort)

## When to use it

Praise a brief explanation that identifies the key issue.

Brevity alone does not make an explanation accurate.

## The image & its use

A complicated discussion sometimes becomes clear when someone finds the detail that connects it. This expression praises that moment of concise insight. The speaker says little, yet the remark identifies what earlier explanations had missed. It is useful for interpreting a design, understanding a story, or locating a practical problem. The important feature is the clarity of the insight, not the number of words or a wish to sound clever.

## Examples

老师一语道破了题目的关键。

### Traditional Chinese

老師一語道破了題目的關鍵。

lǎo shī yī yǔ dào pò liǎo tí mù dì guān jiàn 。

The teacher identified the key to the problem in one remark.

她一语道破了设计不协调的原因。

### Traditional Chinese

她一語道破了設計不協調的原因。

tā yī yǔ dào pò liǎo shè jì bù xié tiáo de yuán yīn 。

She briefly pinpointed why the design felt unbalanced.

这句评论一语道破了文章的特点。

### Traditional Chinese

這句評論一語道破了文章的特點。

zhè jù píng lùn yī yǔ dào pò liǎo wén zhāng de tè diǎn 。

The comment concisely identified the article's defining feature.

他一语道破，我们终于明白了。

### Traditional Chinese

他一語道破，我們終於明白了。

tā yī yǔ dào pò ， wǒ men zhōng yú míng bái le 。

His concise explanation finally made it clear to us.

## Sources & reference checks

Original explanations and examples from Chinese Idioms Almanac. Source-checked October 7, 2026.

- [Ministry of Education · 成語典](https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/idiomView.jsp?ID=1063&webMd=1&la=0)

- [CC-CEDICT · forms & pronunciation](https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?page=worddict&wdqb=%E4%B8%80%E8%AA%9E%E9%81%93%E7%A0%B4)

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