扯皮 (chě pí) — to pass the buck, to shirk responsibility by arguing; to argue endlessly over trivial matters

Definition

Colloquial verb meaning to argue endlessly or shirk responsibility by blaming others. Implies petty bickering over trivialities, not a serious dispute.

verb
to pass the buck, to shirk responsibility by arguingto argue endlessly over trivial matters

Examples

  • 扯皮，。
    Bié zài chě pí le, zán men gǎn jǐn jiě jué wèn tí ba.
    Stop passing the buck — let's solve the problem quickly.
  • ，，。
    Tā men kāi le sān gè xiǎo shí de huì, yì zhí chě lái chě qù de pí, shén me yě méi dìng xià lái.
    They met for three hours, arguing back and forth the whole time, and didn't decide anything.
  • ，扯皮。
    Zhè shì běn lái hěn jiǎn dān, yì chě pí jiù fù zá le.
    This matter was simple at first, but once the buck-passing started, it got complicated.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

扯chěpull
皮pískin

扯 (pull) and 皮 (skin) combine to suggest pulling back and forth, hence arguing.

Characters in this word

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
手手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
止
止zhǐ扯chě
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

扯 has 手 (hand) and 止; the hand part shows it is about hand actions, while 止 gives the sound.

Open 扯 →

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

皮 shows a hand pulling fur off an animal pelt, with the pelt drawn at the upper left.

Open 皮 →

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