退避三舍 (tuì bì sān shè) — to give way to someone; to deliberately avoid a conflict or confrontation; to keep one's distance from something (in order to stay out of trouble)
Definition
A literary chengyu: 'retreat three舍 to avoid' — i.e. step back deliberately to avoid conflict. Implies strategic yielding, not cowardice.
idiom
to give way to someoneto deliberately avoid a conflict or confrontationto keep one's distance from something (in order to stay out of trouble)
Examples
- ，退避三舍。Nà wèi lǎo zhuān jiā pí qi hěn dà, tóng shì men dōu duì tā tuì bì sān shè.That old expert has a bad temper; all his colleagues give way to him.
- ，退避三舍。Yù dào zhè zhǒng mǐn gǎn huà tí, tā tōng cháng xuǎn zé tuì bì sān shè.When encountering such sensitive topics, he usually chooses to avoid them assiduously.
- ，退避三舍，。Zài shāng yè tán pàn zhōng, yǒu shí tuì bì sān shè bú shì shì ruò, ér shì cè lüè.In business negotiations, sometimes giving way is not a sign of weakness but a strategy.
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