迄今为止

• Pinyin: qì jīn wéi zhǐ
• Hanzi breakdown: 迄 = 辶 + 乞 (until); 今 = present; 为 = 爪 + 象 (for/as); 止 = foot radical (stop/cease)

Meaning

Up to now; as of yet; so far. A formal four-character phrase meaning up until the present moment — emphasising the totality of the period from some past point to now.

More emphatic than 迄今 alone. A fixed phrase used in formal writing, official documents, and academic papers. Often placed at the beginning of a clause. 迄今为止最成功的 (the most successful to date). Interchangeable with 到目前为止 in formal contexts.

Examples

1. 迄今为止，全球尚无任何国家研发出能够彻底治愈该疾病的特效药物，研究工作仍在推进中。 So far, no country in the world has developed a miracle drug that can completely cure this disease, and research is still moving forward.
2. 迄今为止，这部小说已被译成七十多种语言，创下了该出版社有史以来最高的全球销售纪录。 So far, this novel has been translated into more than seventy languages, setting the highest global sales record in the publisher’s history.
3. 迄今为止，考古学家在该遗址共出土了一千三百余件珍贵文物，其中不乏极为罕见的绝世精品。 So far, archaeologists have unearthed more than 1,300 precious cultural relics at the site, including some extremely rare treasures.

Usage Guide

Context: academic, journalism, official, history

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 迄今为止，这项工程是人类建造的规模最宏大、技术最复杂的基础设施项目之一，举世公认。(To date, this project is one of the largest in scale and most technically complex infrastructure undertakings ever built by humankind — universally acknowledged.)
• 迄今为止所有临床试验结果均表明，该疗法对特定类型的肿瘤具有显著的临床治疗效果。(All clinical trial results to date indicate that this therapy has a significant therapeutic effect on specific types of tumours.)

Don't Say

• 迄今为止我很困 — 迄今为止 is highly formal and factual; for personal or informal speech use 到现在/现在还 instead

Origin & History

迄今 (up to now) + 为止 (up to this point; cease here) — up to now and no further

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal