Taivo A Taiwan Mandarin dictionary

偷雞不成蝕把米

tōujībùchéngshíbǎmǐ

ㄊㄡ ㄐㄧ ㄅㄨˋ ㄔㄥˊ ㄕˊ ㄅㄚˇ ㄇㄧˇ

Simplified 偷鸡不成蚀把米

  1. 1lit. to try to steal a chicken only to end up losing the rice used to lure it (idiom)
  2. 2fig. to try to gain an advantage only to end up worse off
  3. 3to go for wool and come back shorn

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