鹬蚌相争
lit. sandpiper and clam war together (and the fisherman catches both) (idiom); fig. neighbors who can't agree lose out to a third party
Characters and words in 鹬蚌相争
common snipe / sandpiper
abbr. for Bengbu prefecture-level city 蚌埠市[Beng4 bu4 shi4], Anhui
mussel / clam
each other / one another / mutually / fret on the neck of a pipa 琵琶[pi2 pa5] (a fret on the soundboard is called a 品[pin3])
appearance / portrait / picture / government minister / (physics) phase / (literary) to appraise (esp. by scrutinizing physical features) / to read sb's fortune (by physiognomy, palmistry etc)
相
=
木
+
目
:
Mnemonic symbol: I take "eye" and "tree" as resembling an ent, an alive tree. Xi Shi (xi) portrays (相) an ent (相) in the anglepod's bathroom (ang4). Unfortunately she's really bad at painting, and her portrait resembles more a Christmas tree (木). The Eye of Providence (目) enters and, just from the shape of the Christmas Tree, instantly recognizes its own portrait (相).
to strive for / to vie for / to argue or debate / deficient or lacking (dialect) / how or what (literary)
Words with 鹬蚌相争
lit. when the snipe and the clam grapple with each other, the fisherman catches them both (idiom) / fig. when two sides are locked in dispute, it's often a third party that benefits
Sentences with 鹬蚌相争
鹬蚌相争 currently does not appear in any sentence.