顾此失彼 in English gu4 ci3 shi1 bi3 Meaning

Meanings

  • literally (word for word) to attend to one thing and lose sight of another (idiomatic expression)
  • metaphorically to be unable to manage two or more things at once
  • cannot pay attention to one thing without neglecting the other

Simplified Characters

顾 此 失 彼

Traditional Characters

顧 此 失 彼

Pinyin

gu4 ci3 shi1 bi3

Literal

Literal explanation, with pronunciation and meaning of each character.

顾gu4surname Gu 此ci3this 失shi1to lose 彼bi3that