放过

• Pinyin: fàng guò
• Hanzi breakdown: 放 = 攴 + 方 (to strike in a direction — to release or discharge); 过 = 辶 + 咼 (movement past a crooked form — to pass by)

Meaning

To let off; to let pass; to spare. To choose not to punish, pursue, or take action against someone or something when one has the power to do so.

Often used in the negative: 不能放过 (cannot let off) or as a rhetorical expression of strong determination. Also appears colloquially in the sense of not passing up an opportunity (别放过这个机会). Can apply to people, mistakes, or overlooked details.

Examples

1. 主管在例行质检中发现了多处细节瑕疵，明确表示此次不会放过任何不符合标准的产品，要求全批返工重新检测。 During a routine quality inspection, the supervisor found multiple detailed flaws and made it clear that no substandard products would be let slide this time, ordering the entire batch to be reworked and retested.
2. 他在审阅报告时极为严苛，任何逻辑漏洞或数据不一致都不会轻易放过，这种一丝不苟的态度令整个团队既钦佩又畏惧。 He was extremely strict when reviewing reports, never letting even minor logic gaps or data inconsistencies pass; that meticulous attitude earned the team’s admiration and their fear.
3. 检察官在结案陈词中强调，对于在公共安全领域犯下严重过失的责任人，法律绝不应轻易放过，否则将无法起到震慑作用。 In closing arguments, the prosecutor emphasized that the law must not go easy on those responsible for serious negligence in public safety, or it will fail to serve as a deterrent.

Usage Guide

Context: law, management, everyday, interpersonal

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 公司的质量管理规程明文规定，任何一道生产工序出现的系统性缺陷都不得放过，必须立即追溯根本原因并启动纠正预防程序。(The company's quality management procedures explicitly state that any systematic defect in any production process must not be overlooked; the root cause must be immediately traced and a corrective and preventive procedure initiated.)
• 她告诉自己，这次机会来之不易，无论如何都不能放过，即便要付出比别人多几倍的努力也在所不惜。(She told herself that this opportunity was hard-won and could not be let slip under any circumstances, even if it required several times more effort than others.)

Don't Say

• 放过 to mean 'excuse/pardon someone emotionally' in formal apology contexts — in formal contexts use 原谅 (to forgive) or 宽恕 (to pardon); 放过 implies a power dynamic where one chooses not to pursue punishment, which can sound transactional

Origin & History

放 (to release/let) + 过 (to pass) — to let someone or something pass without penalty

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal