脚踏两条船
jiǎo tà liǎng tiáo chuán
Pinyin

Definition

脚踏两条船
 - 
jiǎo tà liǎng tiáo chuán
  1. lit. to stand with each foot in a different boat (idiom)
  2. fig. to have it both ways
  3. to run after two hares
  4. (especially) to have two lovers at the same time

Character Decomposition

Related Words (20)

船
chuán
  1. 1 variant of 船[chuán]
船票
chuán piào
  1. 1 ship ticket
踏上
tà shàng
  1. 1 to set foot on
  2. 2 to step on or into
踏实
tā shi
  1. 1 firmly-based
  2. 2 steady
  3. 3 steadfast
  4. 4 to have peace of mind
  5. 5 free from anxiety
  6. 6 Taiwan pr. [tà shí]
划船
huá chuán
  1. 1 to row a boat
  2. 2 rowing boat
  3. 3 rowing (sport)
帆船
fān chuán
  1. 1 sailboat
快船
Kuài chuán
  1. 1 Los Angeles Clippers (NBA team)
撑船
chēng chuán
  1. 1 to punt
  2. 2 to pole a boat
沉船
chén chuán
  1. 1 shipwreck
  2. 2 sunken boat
  3. 3 sinking ship
渔船
yú chuán
  1. 1 fishing boat
  2. 2 CL:條|条[tiáo]
脚踏
jiǎo tà
  1. 1 pedal
脚踏实地
jiǎo tà shí dì
  1. 1 to have one's feet firmly planted on the ground (idiom); realistic without flights of fancy
  2. 2 steady and serious character
脚踏车
jiǎo tà chē
  1. 1 bicycle
  2. 2 bike (Tw)
  3. 3 CL:輛|辆[liàng]
船员
chuán yuán
  1. 1 sailor
  2. 2 crew member
船舶
chuán bó
  1. 1 shipping
  2. 2 boats
船长
chuán zhǎng
  1. 1 captain (of a boat)
  2. 2 skipper
踏
tā
  1. 1 see 踏實|踏实[tā shi]
踏板
tà bǎn
  1. 1 pedal (in a car, on a piano etc)
  2. 2 treadle
  3. 3 footstool
  4. 4 footrest
  5. 5 footboard
踏步
tà bù
  1. 1 stride
  2. 2 to step (on the spot)
  3. 3 to mark time
  4. 4 at a standstill
踏踏实实
tā tā shí shí
  1. 1 steady
  2. 2 steadfast

Idioms (16)

上贼船
shàng zéi chuán
  1. 1 lit. to board a pirate ship (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. to associate with criminals
步斗踏罡
bù dǒu tà gāng
  1. 1 to worship the astral deities (idiom, refers to Daoist astrology)
步罡踏斗
bù gāng tà dǒu
  1. 1 to worship the astral deities (idiom, refers to Daoist astrology)
水涨船高
shuǐ zhǎng chuán gāo
  1. 1 the tide rises, the boat floats (idiom); fig. to change with the overall trend
  2. 2 to develop according to the situation
脚踏两条船
jiǎo tà liǎng tiáo chuán
  1. 1 lit. to stand with each foot in a different boat (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. to have it both ways
  3. 3 to run after two hares
  4. 4 (especially) to have two lovers at the same time
脚踏实地
jiǎo tà shí dì
  1. 1 to have one's feet firmly planted on the ground (idiom); realistic without flights of fancy
  2. 2 steady and serious character
船到桥门自会直
chuán dào qiáo mén zì huì zhí
  1. 1 lit. when the ship arrives at the bridge we can deal with the problem
  2. 2 no point in worrying about sth until it actually happens (idiom)
船到江心，补漏迟
chuán dào jiāng xīn , bǔ lòu chí
  1. 1 It's too late to plug the leak once ship is in the middle of the river. (idiom)
船到码头，车到站
chuán dào mǎ tóu , chē dào zhàn
  1. 1 The ship has docked, the carriage has reached the station.
  2. 2 The job is over, it's time to relax. (idiom)
草船借箭
cǎo chuán jiè jiàn
  1. 1 lit. using straw boats to borrow arrows (idiom, from 三國演義|三国演义[Sān guó Yǎn yì])
  2. 2 fig. to use others' manpower and resources for one's own ends
踏破铁鞋
tà pò tiě xié
  1. 1 lit. to wear out one's iron shoes (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. to search high and low
踏破门槛
tā pò mén kǎn
  1. 1 to wear out the doorstep (idiom)
  2. 2 to crowd at sb's door
踏青赏春
tà qīng shǎng chūn
  1. 1 to enjoy a beautiful spring walk (idiom)
踏青赏花
tà qīng shǎng huā
  1. 1 to enjoy the flowers on a spring outing (idiom)
车到山前必有路，船到桥头自然直
chē dào shān qián bì yǒu lù , chuán dào qiáo tóu zì rán zhí
  1. 1 lit. When we get to the mountain, there'll be a way through and when the boat gets to the pier-head, it will go straight with the current. (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. Everything will turn out for the best.
  3. 3 Let's worry about it when it happens.
  4. 4 It will be all right on the night.
阴沟里翻船
yīn gōu lǐ fān chuán
  1. 1 to meet with unexpected failure (idiom)
  2. 2 to fail miserably (where failure was not expected)

Sample Sentences

到底是谁脚踏两条船啊？你以为我不知道你和刘翔的事？我没事业、没钱、什么都没有。你应该跟他去过好日子！
dàodǐ shì shéi jiǎo tà liǎng tiáo chuán ā ？nǐ yǐwéi wǒ bù zhīdào nǐ hé Liú Xiáng de shì ？wǒ méi shìyè 、méi qián 、shénme dōu méiyǒu 。nǐ yīnggāi gēn tā qù guò hǎo rìzi ！
Who's the one two-timing? You think I don't know about you and Liu Xiang? I don't have a career, don't have money, I don't have anything at all. Why don't you go live happily ever after with him!
Go to Lesson 
哼，终于心虚了。我最看不起你这种脚踏两条船还不敢承认的男人。
hēng ，zhōngyú xīnxū le 。wǒ zuì kàn bu qǐ nǐ zhèzhǒng jiǎo tà liǎng tiáo chuán hái bù gǎn chéngrèn de nánrén 。
Humph. You finally have a guilty conscience. I most despise these kind of two-timing men who won't come clean like you.
Go to Lesson