鱼与熊掌不可兼得 in English yu2 yu3 xiong2 zhang3 bu4 ke3 jian1 de2 Meaning

Meanings

  • literally (word for word) the fish and the bear's paw, you can't have both at the same time (idiomatic expression, from Mencius); metaphorically you must choose one or the other
  • you can't always get everything you want
  • you can't have your cake and eat it

Simplified Characters

鱼 与 熊 掌 不 可 兼 得

Traditional Characters

魚 與 熊 掌 不 可 兼 得

Pinyin

yu2 yu3 xiong2 zhang3 bu4 ke3 jian1 de2

Literal

Literal explanation, with pronunciation and meaning of each character.

鱼yu2surname Yu 与yu3variant of 歟|欤[yu2] 熊xiong2surname Xiong 掌zhang3palm of the hand 不bu4(negative prefix) 可ke3can 兼jian1double 得de2to obtain