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走钢丝 (zǒu gāng sī) — to walk a tightrope (literal); to tread a fine line; to handle a risky or delicate situation

Definition

A vivid metaphor for 'walking a tightrope' — both the literal circus act and, more commonly, navigating a risky or delicate situation where one wrong move causes trouble.

verb
to walk a tightrope (literal)to tread a fine lineto handle a risky or delicate situation

Examples

  • 走钢丝，。
    Zá jì yǎn yuán zài wǔ tái shàng zǒu gāng sī, guān zhòng dōu bǐng zhù le hū xī.
    The acrobat walked the tightrope on stage, and the audience held their breath.
  • 走钢丝，，。
    Tā zài gōng sī gǎi gé zhōng zǒu gāng sī, jì yào tí gāo xiào lǜ, yòu bù néng dé zuì lǎo yuán gōng.
    He is walking a tightrope in the company reform — he needs to improve efficiency without offending senior employees.
  • ，。
    Wǒ zǒu guò yí cì gāng sī, nà gǎn jué tài cì jī le.
    I walked the tightrope once — it was such a thrilling feeling.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

走zǒuwalk
钢丝steel wire
钢gāngsteel丝sīwire
偏正Modifier + head

走 means to walk, and 钢丝 is steel wire, together describing walking on a tightrope.

Characters in this word

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

The original shape showed a running man, with a foot added later.

Open 走 →

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 鋼; 钢 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
金金jīnmetal
Sound part声符shēngfú
岡
岡gāng鋼gàng
Same sound today

The traditional form 鋼 shows 金, meaning metal, next to 岡, which carries the sound gāng; the simplified 钢 is a later shorthand.

Open 钢 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 絲; 丝 is its simplified writing.

  • 糸糸mì
  • 糸糸mì

In the traditional form 絲, the shape is two 糸 written together; this is about 絲, not the simplified 丝.

Open 丝 →
Appears in
Safety & DangerSports & Athletics

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