幸免

• Pinyin: xìng miǎn
• Hanzi breakdown: 幸 = fortunate; 免 = 兔 minus one stroke (escape/avoid)

Meaning

To be fortunate enough to escape; to narrowly avoid disaster or death.

A formal verb almost always followed by 于难 (from disaster), 于死 (from death), or 于毁 (from destruction). Common in formal writing, historical accounts, and news reporting.

Examples

1. 列车出轨事故中多名旅客幸免于难，但现场仍有人员伤亡，令人痛心。 In the train derailment, many passengers narrowly escaped disaster, but there were still casualties at the scene, which is heartbreaking.
2. 他从高处坠落后奇迹般幸免于死，主治医生称其为罕见的医学奇迹。 After falling from a great height, he miraculously escaped death; the attending physician called it a rare medical miracle.
3. 这栋历史建筑在战时炮火中幸免于毁，保存至今成为珍贵的文化遗产。 This historic building survived wartime shelling and has been preserved to this day, becoming a priceless cultural heritage site.

Usage Guide

Context: disasters, history, news reports

Tone: solemn

Do Say

• 这次爆炸事故中现场工作人员因及时疏散而幸免于难，无一伤亡。(In this explosion accident, on-site workers escaped disaster thanks to timely evacuation, with no casualties.)
• 古城在历次战乱中幸免于毁，完整保存了大批珍贵的历史建筑与文物。(The ancient city escaped destruction through numerous wars, preserving a large collection of precious historical buildings and artefacts intact.)

Don't Say

• 幸免一场感冒 — 幸免 is reserved for serious, life-threatening dangers; for minor inconveniences use 避免 or 逃过; applying 幸免 to trivial matters greatly overstates their severity

Origin & History

幸 (fortunate/lucky) + 免 (escape/avoid) — to be lucky enough to avoid something terrible

Cultural Context

Era: Traditional to Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal