无力

• Pinyin: wú lì
• Hanzi breakdown: 无 = negation (without); 力 = a pictograph of a muscular arm — strength, power, capacity

Meaning

Powerless; lacking the ability, strength, or resources to act or effect change. Can describe physical weakness, financial incapacity, or systemic impotence in the face of a problem.

Versatile in scope: 身体无力 (physical weakness), 经济无力 (financial incapacity), 改变无力 (powerless to change), 回天无力 (powerless to reverse the situation). Often used in formal or analytical registers to describe structural or institutional limitations. Closely related to 无能为力 but less absolute — 无力 may suggest insufficient capacity rather than total inability.

Examples

1. 面对如此庞大的资金缺口，这家小型公益机构感到无力独自承担，向社会紧急发出了募捐倡议。 Faced with such a huge funding shortfall, the small nonprofit felt unable to shoulder it alone and urgently issued a public fundraising appeal.
2. 他声音低沉，语气中透出深深的无力感，显然已接受了这一难以改变的现实。 His voice was low, and his tone revealed a deep sense of powerlessness; it was clear he had accepted this hard-to-change reality.
3. 在强大的系统性惯性面前，个别基层官员即便有意改革，也往往感到无力推动实质性变化。 In the face of powerful systemic inertia, even grassroots officials who want reform often feel powerless to drive substantive change.

Usage Guide

Context: economics, politics, social analysis, personal reflection

Tone: negative

Do Say

• 当单一的货币政策工具在面对结构性经济问题时显得无力，政府往往需要配合财政手段和结构性改革，才能真正推动经济走出困境。(When a single monetary policy instrument proves insufficient in the face of structural economic problems, the government often needs to coordinate fiscal tools and structural reforms to genuinely drive the economy out of its difficulties.)
• 面对积弊和利益格局，这位新上任的改革者感到无力，但仍决定从局部入手。(Faced with long-standing problems and entrenched interests, the newly appointed reformer felt powerless, but still chose to start with limited areas.)

Don't Say

• 无力 interchangeably with 无能为力 in all contexts — 无力 suggests insufficient capacity (may improve with more resources/time), while 无能为力 implies total inability regardless of circumstances

Origin & History

无 (without) + 力 (strength/power/capacity) — without the strength or capacity to act

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal