邯鄲學步

See also: 邯郸学步

Chinese

Handan
 
learn; study; science; ‑ology
 
a step; a pace; walk; march; stages in a process
trad. (邯鄲學步) 邯鄲
simp. (邯郸学步) 邯郸
Literally: “to study the walking method of the people of Handan”.

Etymology

From Zhuangzi:

壽陵餘子邯鄲匍匐 [MSC, trad.][▼ expand/hide]
寿陵余子邯郸匍匐 [MSC, simp.]
Zǐ wǎng yǐ! Qiě zǐ dú bù wén fú shòulíng yúzǐ zhī xué xíng yú hándān yú? Wèi dé guó néng, yòu shī qí gù xíng yǐ, zhí púfú ér guī ěr. Jīn zǐ bù qù, jiāng wàng zǐ zhī gù, shī zǐ zhī yè. [Pinyin]
Go your ways, Sir. And have you not heard of the young learners of Shou-ling, and how they did in Han-dan? Before they had acquired what they might have done in that capital, they had forgotten what they had learned to do in their old city, and were marched back to it on their hands and knees. If now you do not go away, you will forget your old acquirements, and fail in your profession.

Pronunciation


Idiom

邯鄲學步

  1. to badly imitate others, and lose one's individuality in the process
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