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半途而废 (bàn tú ér fèi) — to give up halfway; to leave something unfinished

Definition

A chengyu meaning to abandon something halfway through. Implies the effort already invested is wasted — stronger and more literary than simply saying 放弃.

phrase
to give up halfwayto leave something unfinished

Examples

  • 半途而废，。
    Xué wài yǔ zuì pà bàn tú ér fèi, jiān chí cái néng jìn bù.
    The worst thing in learning a foreign language is giving up halfway; only persistence leads to progress.
  • ，半途而废。
    Zhè ge jì huà yǐ jīng tóu rù hěn duō, bù néng bàn tú ér fèi.
    We've already invested a lot in this plan; we can't give up halfway.
  • 半途而废，。
    Tā měi cì pǎo bù dōu bàn tú ér fèi, suǒ yǐ shēn tǐ yì zhí bù hǎo.
    He always gives up halfway when running, so his health has never been good.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

The shape pairs 八 (to divide) with 牛 (cow), showing a cow cut into two halves.

Open 半 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辶Written in full as辵chuò
Sound part声符shēngfú
余
余yú途
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

途 is made from 辶 (written fully as 辵), a walking part, and 余, which gives the sound.

Open 途 →

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

The shape of 而 is a picture of a beard.

Open 而 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 廢; 废 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
广广guǎnghouse
Sound part声符shēngfú
發
發fā廢fèi
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 廢 shows 广 as a house and 發 as the sound.

Open 废 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Idioms & Set PhrasesSuccess & Failure

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