比上不足比下有余
bǐ shàng bù zú bǐ xià yǒu yú
Pinyin

Definition

比上不足比下有余
 - 
bǐ shàng bù zú bǐ xià yǒu yú
  1. to fall short of the best but be better than the worst
  2. can pass muster

Character Decomposition

Related Words (20)

yī xià
  1. 1 (used after a verb) give it a go
  2. 2 to do (sth for a bit to give it a try)
  3. 3 one time
  4. 4 once
  5. 5 in a while
  6. 6 all of a sudden
  7. 7 all at once
shǎng
  1. 1 see 上聲|上声[shǎng shēng]
xià
  1. 1 down
  2. 2 downwards
  3. 3 below
  4. 4 lower
  5. 5 later
  6. 6 next (week etc)
  7. 7 second (of two parts)
  8. 8 to decline
  9. 9 to go down
  10. 10 to arrive at (a decision, conclusion etc)
  11. 11 measure word to show the frequency of an action
xià zǎi
  1. 1 to download
  2. 2 also pr. [xià zài]
  1. 1 (negative prefix)
  2. 2 not
  3. 3 no
yǒu
  1. 1 to have
  2. 2 there is
  3. 3 there are
  4. 4 to exist
  5. 5 to be
  1. 1 Belgium
  2. 2 Belgian
  3. 3 abbr. for 比利時|比利时[Bǐ lì shí]
méi yǒu
  1. 1 haven't
  2. 2 hasn't
  3. 3 doesn't exist
  4. 4 to not have
  5. 5 to not be
yī xià zi
  1. 1 in a short while
  2. 2 all at once
  3. 3 all of a sudden
yī wú suǒ yǒu
  1. 1 not having anything at all (idiom); utterly lacking
  2. 2 without two sticks to rub together
shàng xià
  1. 1 up and down
  2. 2 top and bottom
  3. 3 old and new
  4. 4 length
  5. 5 about
shàng lái
  1. 1 to come up
  2. 2 to approach
  3. 3 (verb complement indicating success)
shàng chuán
  1. 1 to upload
shàng wǔ
  1. 1 morning
  2. 2 CL:個|个[gè]
shàng qù
  1. 1 to go up
shàng si
  1. 1 boss
  2. 2 superior
shàng chǎng
  1. 1 on stage
  2. 2 to go on stage
  3. 3 to take the field
shàng tiān
  1. 1 Heaven
  2. 2 Providence
  3. 3 God
  4. 4 the day before
  5. 5 the sky above
  6. 6 to fly to the sky
  7. 7 to take off and fly into space
  8. 8 to die
  9. 9 to pass away
shàng xué
  1. 1 to go to school
  2. 2 to attend school
shàng shì
  1. 1 to hit the market (of a new product)
  2. 2 to float (a company on the stock market)

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
一哭二闹三上吊
yī kū èr nào sān shàng diào
  1. 1 to make a terrible scene (idiom)
  2. 2 to throw a tantrum
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
一夔已足
yī kuí yǐ zú
  1. 1 one talented person is enough for the job (idiom)
一失足成千古恨
yī shī zú chéng qiān gǔ hèn
  1. 1 a single slip may cause everlasting sorrow (idiom)
一字不提
yī zì bù tí
  1. 1 to not mention a single word (about sth) (idiom)
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
一成不变
yī chéng bù biàn
  1. 1 nothing much changes (idiom); always the same
  2. 2 stuck in a rut
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)
一条绳上的蚂蚱
yī tiáo shéng shàng de mà zha
  1. 1 lit. grasshoppers tied together with a piece of string (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. people who are in it together for better or worse
  3. 3 people who will sink or swim together
一毛不拔
yī máo bù bá
  1. 1 stingy (idiom)
一无所有
yī wú suǒ yǒu
  1. 1 not having anything at all (idiom); utterly lacking
  2. 2 without two sticks to rub together
一瓶子不响,半瓶子晃荡
yī píng zi bù xiǎng , bàn píng zi huàng dang
  1. 1 lit. a full bottle makes no sound; a half-filled bottle sloshes (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. empty vessels make the most noise
一病不起
yī bìng bù qǐ
  1. 1 to fall gravely ill, never to recover (idiom)
一窍不通
yī qiào bù tōng
  1. 1 lit. doesn't (even) enter a single aperture (of one's head)
  2. 2 I don't understand a word (idiom)
  3. 3 it's all Greek to me
一笔不苟
yī bǐ bù gǒu
  1. 1 lit. not even one stroke is negligent (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. to write characters (calligraphy) in which every stroke is placed perfectly
一丝不挂
yī sī bù guà
  1. 1 not wearing one thread (idiom); absolutely naked
  2. 2 without a stitch of clothing
  3. 3 in one's birthday suit
一丝不苟
yī sī bù gǒu
  1. 1 not one thread loose (idiom); strictly according to the rules
  2. 2 meticulous
  3. 3 not one hair out of place

Sample Sentences