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成事不足，败事有余
chéngshìbùzú,bàishìyǒuyú
Traditional: 成事不足，敗事有餘
unable to accomplish anything but liable to spoil everything (idiom) / unable to do anything right / never make, but always mar
Character Breakdown
成
chéng
to accomplish; to become; to complete, to finish; to succeed
HSK 3
事
shì
affair, matter, business; to serve; accident, incident
HSK 2
不
bù
no, not, un-; negative prefix
HSK 1
足
zú
foot; to attain, to satisfy; enough
HSK 2
败
bài
failure; to decline, to fail, to suffer defeat
HSK 4
事
shì
affair, matter, business; to serve; accident, incident
HSK 2
有
yǒu
to have, to own, to possess; to exist
HSK 1
余
yú
surplus, remainder; surname
HSK 5
Additional Information
Category
Chinese
HSK Character Level
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HSK Word Level
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