知难而退
zhī nán ér tuì
Pinyin

Definition

知难而退
 - 
zhī nán ér tuì
  1. to sound out the difficulties and retreat to avoid defeat (idiom); fig. to back out of an awkward situation
  2. to get out on finding out what it's really like

Character Decomposition

Related Words (20)

知
zhī
  1. 1 to know
  2. 2 to be aware
知道
zhī dào
  1. 1 to know
  2. 2 to become aware of
  3. 3 also pr. [zhī dao]
而
ér
  1. 1 and
  2. 2 as well as
  3. 3 and so
  4. 4 but (not)
  5. 5 yet (not)
  6. 6 (indicates causal relation)
  7. 7 (indicates change of state)
  8. 8 (indicates contrast)
而且
ér qiě
  1. 1 (not only ...) but also
  2. 2 moreover
  3. 3 in addition
  4. 4 furthermore
不为人知
bù wéi rén zhī
  1. 1 not known to anyone
  2. 2 secret
  3. 3 unknown
不知不觉
bù zhī bù jué
  1. 1 unconsciously
  2. 2 unwittingly
不知所措
bù zhī suǒ cuò
  1. 1 not knowing what to do (idiom); at one's wits' end
  2. 2 embarrassed and at a complete loss
反而
fǎn ér
  1. 1 instead
  2. 2 on the contrary
  3. 3 contrary (to expectations)
告知
gào zhī
  1. 1 to inform
因而
yīn ér
  1. 1 therefore
  2. 2 as a result
  3. 3 thus
  4. 4 and as a result, ...
后退
hòu tuì
  1. 1 to recoil
  2. 2 to draw back
  3. 3 to fall back
  4. 4 to retreat
得知
dé zhī
  1. 1 to find out
  2. 2 to know
  3. 3 to learn about
从天而降
cóng tiān ér jiàng
  1. 1 lit. to drop from the sky (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. to appear unexpectedly
  3. 3 to arise abruptly
  4. 4 out of the blue
  5. 5 to drop into one's lap
从而
cóng ér
  1. 1 thus
  2. 2 thereby
早知
zǎo zhī
  1. 1 foresight
  2. 2 foreknowledge
  3. 3 if one had known earlier,...
明知
míng zhī
  1. 1 to be fully aware of
  2. 2 to know perfectly well
未知
wèi zhī
  1. 1 unknown
无知
wú zhī
  1. 1 ignorant
  2. 2 ignorance
然而
rán ér
  1. 1 however
  2. 2 yet
  3. 3 but
知名
zhī míng
  1. 1 well-known
  2. 2 famous

Idioms (20)

一哄而散
yī hōng ér sàn
  1. 1 to disperse in confusion (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
一拥而入
yī yōng ér rù
  1. 1 to swarm in (of people etc) (idiom)
一望而知
yī wàng ér zhī
  1. 1 to be evident at a glance (idiom)
一概而论
yī gài ér lùn
  1. 1 to lump different matters together (idiom)
一炮而红
yī pào ér hóng
  1. 1 to win instant success (idiom)
  2. 2 to become an instant hit
一无所知
yī wú suǒ zhī
  1. 1 not knowing anything at all (idiom); completely ignorant
  2. 2 without an inkling
一知半解
yī zhī bàn jiě
  1. 1 lit. to know one and understand half (idiom); a smattering of knowledge
  2. 2 dilettante
  3. 3 amateur
一叶知秋
yī yè zhī qiū
  1. 1 lit. the falling of one leaf heralds the coming of autumn (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. a small sign can indicate a great trend
  3. 3 a straw in the wind
一蹴而就
yī cù ér jiù
  1. 1 to get there in one step (idiom); easily done
  2. 2 success at a stroke
  3. 3 to get results overnight
一蹴而得
yī cù ér dé
  1. 1 to get there in one step (idiom); easily done
  2. 2 success at a stroke
  3. 3 to get results overnight
一饮而尽
yī yǐn ér jìn
  1. 1 to drain the cup in one gulp (idiom)
三十而立
sān shí ér lì
  1. 1 thirty years old and therefore independent (idiom, from Confucius)
三思而后行
sān sī ér hòu xíng
  1. 1 think again and again before acting (idiom); consider carefully in advance
三思而行
sān sī ér xíng
  1. 1 think three times then go (idiom); don't act before you've thought it through carefully
不劳而获
bù láo ér huò
  1. 1 to reap without sowing (idiom)
不可同日而语
bù kě tóng rì ér yǔ
  1. 1 lit. mustn't speak of two things on the same day (idiom); not to be mentioned in the same breath
  2. 2 incomparable
不患寡而患不均
bù huàn guǎ ér huàn bù jūn
  1. 1 do not worry about scarcity, but rather about uneven distribution (idiom, from Analects)
不当家不知柴米贵
bù dāng jiā bù zhī chái mǐ guì
  1. 1 a person who doesn't manage a household would not be aware how expensive it is (idiom)
不知丁董
bù zhī Dīng Dǒng
  1. 1 forgetting the fate of Ding and Dong (idiom)
  2. 2 unheeding the lessons of the past

Sample Sentences