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美中不足 (měi zhōng bù zú) — (idiom) a fly in the ointment; the one small flaw that mars an otherwise perfect thing

Definition

Literally 'beauty within, not enough' — a set phrase for the one small flaw in an otherwise excellent thing. Used to soften praise with a regret, as in the pattern 美中不足的是… ('the only downside is…').

idiom
a fly in the ointmentthe one small flaw that mars an otherwise perfect thing

Examples

  • ，美中不足。
    Zhè ge fāng àn hěn wán měi, měi zhōng bù zú de shì yù suàn tài gāo le.
    This plan is perfect, except the budget is too high.
  • ，美中不足。
    Tā de chéng jì hěn hǎo, měi zhōng bù zú de shì tǐ yù bù jí gé.
    His grades are great, but the one drawback is that he failed PE.
  • ，美中不足。
    Zhè jiā cān tīng wèi dào yī liú, měi zhōng bù zú de shì fú wù tài dù chà.
    This restaurant has first-class food, but the service attitude is poor.

Origin

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

美 shows 大, a person, wearing 羊, a headdress of feathers or ram's horn.

Open 美 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The original picture showed a flagpole with a drum in the middle, set up in the center of a field.

Open 中 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The picture in 不 originally showed a flower’s calyx; the “no” sense came later from a related character, not from this picture.

Open 不 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

足 was originally drawn as a leg.

Open 足 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9

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