The idiom **史无前例 (shǐ wú qián lì)** is formed through a classical Chinese grammatical structure where the four characters combine logically to create a fixed, metaphorical meaning. Literally, **史** means "history," **无** means "without," **前** means "before" or "precedent," and **例** means "example" or "instance." Thus, the phrase parses as "In history, there is no prior example," succinctly conveying the idea of something being entirely unprecedented, unparalleled, or having never happened before. This formation is typical of *chéngyǔ* (成语), where a compact, historical, or literary phrase gains a profound, standardized meaning beyond the simple sum of its characters.