人在江湖，身不由己
rén zài jiāng hú , shēn bù yóu jǐ
Pinyin

Definition

人在江湖，身不由己
 - 
rén zài jiāng hú , shēn bù yóu jǐ
  1. you can't always do as you like
  2. one has to compromise in this world (idiom)

Character Decomposition

Related Words (20)

不
bù
  1. 1 (negative prefix)
  2. 2 not
  3. 3 no
人
rén
  1. 1 man
  2. 2 person
  3. 3 people
  4. 4 CL:個|个[gè],位[wèi]
在
zài
  1. 1 (located) at
  2. 2 (to be) in
  3. 3 to exist
  4. 4 in the middle of doing sth
  5. 5 (indicating an action in progress)
现在
xiàn zài
  1. 1 now
  2. 2 at present
  3. 3 at the moment
  4. 4 modern
  5. 5 current
  6. 6 nowadays
自己
zì jǐ
  1. 1 oneself
  2. 2 one's own
一鸣惊人
yī míng jīng rén
  1. 1 to amaze the world with a single brilliant feat (idiom); an overnight celebrity
上身
shàng shēn
  1. 1 upper part of the body
不久
bù jiǔ
  1. 1 not long (after)
  2. 2 before too long
  3. 3 soon
  4. 4 soon after
不但
bù dàn
  1. 1 not only (... but also...)
不仅
bù jǐn
  1. 1 not only (this one)
  2. 2 not just (...) but also
不到
bù dào
  1. 1 not to arrive
  2. 2 not reaching
  3. 3 insufficient
  4. 4 less than
不同
bù tóng
  1. 1 different
  2. 2 distinct
  3. 3 not the same
  4. 4 not alike
不堪
bù kān
  1. 1 cannot bear
  2. 2 cannot stand
  3. 3 utterly
  4. 4 extremely
不如
bù rú
  1. 1 not equal to
  2. 2 not as good as
  3. 3 inferior to
  4. 4 it would be better to
不妨
bù fáng
  1. 1 there is no harm in
  2. 2 might as well
不安
bù ān
  1. 1 unpeaceful
  2. 2 unstable
  3. 3 uneasy
  4. 4 disturbed
  5. 5 restless
  6. 6 worried
不少
bù shǎo
  1. 1 many
  2. 2 a lot
  3. 3 not few
不屑
bù xiè
  1. 1 to disdain to do sth
  2. 2 to think sth not worth doing
  3. 3 to feel it beneath one's dignity
不已
bù yǐ
  1. 1 endlessly
  2. 2 incessantly
不幸
bù xìng
  1. 1 misfortune
  2. 2 adversity
  3. 3 unfortunate
  4. 4 sad
  5. 5 unfortunately
  6. 6 CL:個|个[gè]

Idioms (20)

一不做，二不休
yī bù zuò , èr bù xiū
  1. 1 don't do it, or don't rest (idiom); either give up, or go through to the end
  2. 2 Since we started, we must carry it through whatever happens.
  3. 3 in for a penny, in for a pound
一人得道，鸡犬升天
yī rén dé dào , jī quǎn shēng tiān
  1. 1 lit. when a man achieves the Dao, his poultry and dogs rise to Heaven (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. to ride on sb else's success
  3. 3 Once one man gets a government position, all his cronies get in too
  4. 4 Once sb has cracked the problem, every Tom, Dick and Harry can do it
一个天南，一个地北
yī ge tiān nán , yī ge dì běi
  1. 1 to live miles apart (idiom)
一传十，十传百
yī chuán shí , shí chuán bǎi
  1. 1 news pass quickly from mouth to mouth (idiom)
  2. 2 an infectious disease spreads quickly (old meaning)
一则以喜，一则以忧
yī zé yǐ xǐ , yī zé yǐ yōu
  1. 1 happy on the one hand, but worried on the other (idiom)
一问三不知
yī wèn sān bù zhī
  1. 1 lit. to reply "don't know" whatever the question (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. absolutely no idea of what's going on
  3. 3 complete ignorance
一尘不染
yī chén bù rǎn
  1. 1 untainted by even a speck of dust (idiom); selfless and incorruptible
  2. 2 spotless
一夫当关，万夫莫开
yī fū dāng guān , wàn fū mò kāi
  1. 1 one man can hold the pass against ten thousand enemies (idiom)
一字不提
yī zì bù tí
  1. 1 to not mention a single word (about sth) (idiom)
一寸光阴一寸金，寸金难买寸光阴
yī cùn guāng yīn yī cùn jīn , cùn jīn nán mǎi cùn guāng yīn
  1. 1 lit. An interval of time is worth an ounce of gold, money cannot buy you time. (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. Time is precious and must be treasured.
一山不容二虎
yī shān bù róng èr hǔ
  1. 1 lit. the mountain can't have two tigers (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. this town ain't big enough for the two of us
  3. 3 (of two rivals) to be fiercely competitive
一年之计在于春
yī nián zhī jì zài yú chūn
  1. 1 the whole year must be planned for in the spring (idiom)
  2. 2 early planning is the key to success
一成不变
yī chéng bù biàn
  1. 1 nothing much changes (idiom); always the same
  2. 2 stuck in a rut
一手交钱，一手交货
yī shǒu jiāo qián , yī shǒu jiāo huò
  1. 1 lit. one hand exchanges the cash, the other the goods (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. to pay for what you want in cash
  3. 3 simple and direct transaction
一文不值
yī wén bù zhí
  1. 1 worthless (idiom)
  2. 2 no use whatsoever
一日不见，如隔三秋
yī rì bù jiàn , rú gé sān qiū
  1. 1 one day apart seems like three years (idiom)
一日之计在于晨
yī rì zhī jì zài yú chén
  1. 1 make your day's plan early in the morning (idiom)
  2. 2 early morning is the golden time of the day
一日为师，终身为父
yī rì wéi shī , zhōng shēn wéi fù
  1. 1 lit. teacher for one day, father for ever (idiom)
一是一，二是二
yī shì yī , èr shì èr
  1. 1 lit. one is one, two is two (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. things are (or ought to be) perfectly clear-cut
  3. 3 unequivocal
一朝被蛇咬，十年怕井绳
yī zhāo bèi shé yǎo , shí nián pà jǐng shéng
  1. 1 once bitten by a snake, ten years in fear of a well rope
  2. 2 once bitten, twice shy (idiom)

Sample Sentences

人在江湖，身不由己啊！
rénzàijiānghúshēnbùyóujǐ a ！
A man can't help but go with the tide.
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