打破砂锅问到底

dǎ pò shā guō wèn dào dǐ

to go to the bottom of things (idiom)

a semantically light, transitive verb that is combined with various grammatical objects to form compound verbs and verb-object phrases with a diverse range of meanings (e.g. 打傘|打伞[da3 san3] "to hold an umbrella", 打電話|打电话[da3 dian4 hua4] "to make a phone call", 打針|打针[da3 zhen1] "to get an injection", 打手套[da3 shou3 tao4] "to knit gloves", 打氣|打气[da3 qi4] "to inflate")

broken

shā

sand

guō

pot; pan; wok; cauldron

wèn

to ask; to inquire

dào

to reach; to arrive

bottom; base