八 竿 子 打 不 着

bāgānzidǎbùzháo

(coll.) unrelated; lacking any connection

Traditional 八竿子打不著

Meaning

bāgānzidǎbùzháoba1 gan1 zi5 da3 bu4 zhao2

2 strokes

9 strokes

3 strokes

5 strokes

4 strokes

11 strokes

bā · eight; all around, all sides

Radical 八 · 2 strokes

Ideographic: Two bent lines meaning "to divide"

gān · bamboo pole; penis

Radical ⺮ · 9 strokes · Parts ⺮干

Pictophonetic: bamboo

zi · son, child; seed, egg; fruit; small thing

Radical 子 · 3 strokes · Parts 了一

Pictographic: A child in a wrap, with outstretched arms but bundled legs

dǎ · to attack, to beat, to hit, to strike

Radical 扌 · 5 strokes · Parts 扌丁

Pictophonetic: hand

bù · no, not, un-; negative prefix

Radical 一 · 4 strokes

Ideographic: A bird flying toward the sky 一

zháo · to make a move, to take action

Radical 目 · 11 strokes · Parts 羊目

Glyphs: Wikimedia Commons, public domain.