捡了芝麻丢了西瓜

Traditional: 撿了芝麻丟了西瓜

jiǎn le zhī ma diū le xī guā

Dictionary entry

to let go of the big prize while grabbing at trifles (idiom)

What does 捡了芝麻丢了西瓜 mean?

捡了芝麻丢了西瓜 (jiǎn le zhī ma diū le xī guā) has the following dictionary meaning.

1to let go of the big prize while grabbing at trifles (idiom)

Character breakdown

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捡jiǎnto pick up; to collect; to gather 了le(completed action marker) · (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now)芝zhīZoysia pungens 麻máhemp (variant of 麻[ma2])丢diūto lose · to put aside 西Xīthe West · abbr. for Spain 西班牙[Xi1 ban1 ya2]瓜guāmelon; gourd; squash · (slang) a piece of gossip

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How to pronounce 捡了芝麻丢了西瓜

捡了芝麻丢了西瓜

jiǎn le zhī ma diū le xī guā

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Base dictionary data: CC-CEDICT · CC BY-SA 4.0.