The idiom 遇人不淑 is formed by the sequential combination of four characters: 遇 meaning "to meet", 人 meaning "person", 不 meaning "not", and 淑 meaning "virtuous". Together, they literally translate to "meet a person not virtuous", specifically denoting the misfortune of encountering or marrying someone who is morally unworthy, with historical usage in classical texts like the Shijing to describe a woman's ill-fated marriage.