抱佛脚 (抱佛腳)
bào fó jiǎo
Pinyin

Definition

抱佛脚 (抱佛腳)
 - 
bào fó jiǎo
  1. lit. to clasp the Buddha's feet (without ever having burned incense) (idiom); fig. to profess devotion only when in trouble
  2. panic measures in place of timely preparation

Character Decomposition

Related Words (20)

仿佛
fǎng fú
  1. 1 variant: 仿佛 fǎng fú
佛
Fó
  1. 1 Buddha
  2. 2 Buddhism
抱
bào
  1. 1 to hold
  2. 2 to carry (in one's arms)
  3. 3 to hug
  4. 4 to embrace
  5. 5 to surround
  6. 6 to cherish
抱怨
bào yuàn
  1. 1 to complain
  2. 2 to grumble
  3. 3 to harbor a complaint
  4. 4 to feel dissatisfied
拥抱
yōng bào
  1. 1 to embrace
  2. 2 to hug

Idioms (14)

不看僧面看佛面
bù kàn sēng miàn kàn fó miàn
  1. 1 lit. not for the monk's sake but for the Buddha's sake (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. (to do sth for sb) out of deference to sb else
佛口蛇心
fó kǒu shé xīn
  1. 1 words of a Buddha, heart of a snake (idiom); two-faced
  2. 2 malicious and duplicitous
借花献佛
jiè huā xiàn Fó
  1. 1 lit. presenting the Buddha with borrowed flowers (idiom); fig. to win favor or influence using sb else's property
  2. 2 plagiarism
平时不烧香，临时抱佛脚
píng shí bù shāo xiāng , lín shí bào fó jiǎo
  1. 1 lit. to clasp the Buddha's feet when danger arises (idiom); fig. to profess devotion only when in trouble
  2. 2 doing things at the last minute
  3. 3 to make a hasty last-minute effort (often refers to cramming for exams)
抱佛脚
bào fó jiǎo
  1. 1 lit. to clasp the Buddha's feet (without ever having burned incense) (idiom); fig. to profess devotion only when in trouble
  2. 2 panic measures in place of timely preparation

Sample Sentences

所谓临时抱佛脚，就是在说你。
suǒwèi línshíbàofójiǎo ，jiùshì zài shuō nǐ 。
What you're doing is what we call "embracing the Buddha's feet." (Preparing for something at the last minute.)
Go to Lesson 
平时让你们学你们不学，现在知道要临时抱佛脚了。
píngshí ràng nǐmen xué nǐmen bù xué ，xiànzài zhīdào yào línshí bào fójiǎo le 。
Normally you guys don't listen when I try to teach you, so I know now that you're just trying to cram at the last minute.
Go to Lesson 
我也是临时抱佛脚的。好像峨嵋山是普贤菩萨的道场，还有九华山是......哎，我又忘了。
wǒ yě shì línshí bào fójiǎo de 。hǎoxiàng Éméishān shì Pǔxián Púsa de dàochǎng ，háiyǒu Jiǔhuáshān shì ......āi ，wǒ yòu wàng le 。
I only looked it up last minute myself. I think Emei Mountain is Bodhisattva Puxian's sacred place, and Jiuhua Mountain is...hm, I forgot.
Go to Lesson 
Go to Lesson