望而却步 (wàng ér què bù) — to flinch, to balk at, to shrink back from a challenge

Definition

Literally 'look and step back': to shrink back from a challenge the moment you see it — fear or awe stops you before you even try. Stronger than 害怕 (just feeling afraid); it implies giving up or hesitating to act.

idiom
to flinchto balk atto shrink back from a challenge

Examples

  • 望而却步。
    Zhè ge jià gé ràng hěn duō rén wàng ér què bù.
    This price makes many people flinch.
  • ，望而却步。
    Miàn duì rú cǐ fù zá de rèn wu, tā méi yǒu wàng ér què bù.
    Faced with such a complex task, he did not flinch.
  • ，望而却步。
    Kùn nan zài dà, wǒ men yě bú yīng gāi wàng ér què bù.
    No matter how great the difficulty, we should not shrink back.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

  • 臣臣chéneye
  • 𡈼𡈼𡈼person standing on the ground

望 originally showed 臣 (eye) beside 𡈼 (person standing on the ground): a person standing up and looking off into the distance. Later 月 was added, and the 臣 part became 亡.

Open 望 →

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 卻; 却 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
卩卩jié
Sound part声符shēngfú
𧮫
𧮫𧮫卻què
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 卻 uses 𧮫 for sound and 卩 for meaning; the simplified 却 is a shorthand.

Open 却 →

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

步 uses two 止 (foot) forms, one reversed, to show one foot stepping in front of the other.

Open 步 →

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