What is the translation of "有理走遍天下，无理寸步难行。" in English?

The phrase "有理走遍天下，无理寸步难行。" translates colloquially to: "With reason, you can go anywhere; without it, you can't move a single step."

What does the word "有理" mean in this context?

In this phrase, "有理" (pronounced yǒulǐ) means: reasonable / to have reason / justified

In this phrase, "走遍" (pronounced zǒubiàn) means: to travel all over / to walk everywhere

In this phrase, "天下" (pronounced tiānxià) means: the world / all under heaven

In this phrase, "无理" (pronounced wúlǐ) means: unreasonable / without reason / unjustified

In this phrase, "寸步" (pronounced cùnbù) means: an inch step / a tiny step

In this phrase, "难行" (pronounced nánxíng) means: hard to move / difficult to proceed

🔥 Chinese Quotes

⚡ Interactive

Not a Dictionary · Sentence Card

有理走遍天下，无理寸步难行。

With justice/reason, you can go anywhere; without it, you can’t move a single step. Truth and fairness prevail everywhere.

有理 yǒulǐ “reasonable / have reason” 🔊

走遍 zǒubiàn “travel all over” 🔊

天下 tiānxià “the world / all under heaven” 🔊

无理 wúlǐ “unreasonable / without reason” 🔊

寸步 cùnbù “an inch step” 🔊

难行 nánxíng “hard to move / difficult to proceed” 🔊

A foundational Chinese proverb expressing absolute faith in justice, logic, and moral correctness over arbitrary power or deceit.

有理走遍天下 (“WITH REASON, TRAVEL THE WORLD”)

If your cause is just and you stand on truth (有理), you can walk everywhere (走遍天下) with confidence and success without fear of being overthrown.

无理寸步难行 (“WITHOUT REASON, CAN’T MOVE AN INCH”)

If you are in the wrong or lack justification (无理), you will find it hard to move even a single step (寸步难行) in society.

Core Philosophy: Truth is universal; fairness provides ultimate freedom, while dishonesty or injustice leads to a dead end.

Parallel Antithesis Structure (对偶句):

[Condition A] + [Action/Result A] ； [Condition B] + [Action/Result B]

Composed of two balanced clauses matched word-for-word in grammatical category:

This rhythmic contrast creates a strong rhetorical impact, making moral lessons easy to remember and quote.

EXAMPLE 1 · STANDING FIRM FOR JUSTICE

只要 zhǐyào • as long as 我们 wǒmen • we 事情 shìqing • matter 做 zuò • do 对 duì • right ，有理走遍天下 yǒulǐ zǒubiàn tiānxià • truth goes everywhere 。

As long as we do what is right, justice will prevail wherever we go.

EXAMPLE 2 · DISPUTES AND ARGUMENTS

不要 bùyào • do not 害怕 hàipà • be afraid of 辩论 biànlùn • debate ，正是 zhèngshì • it is 有理走遍天下，无理寸步难行 proverb • truth wins out 。

Don’t be afraid of debate; remember that reason goes everywhere, while unreasonableness gets you nowhere.

TARGET SENTENCE

有理走遍天下，无理寸步难行。