Chinese word

半途而废

Pronunciation

Pinyinbàn tú ér fèi

Meaning

  • verbgive up halfway

Example

不要因为困难就半途而废。bú yào yīn wèi kùn nán jiù bàn tú ér fèi

Don't give up halfway just because it's difficult.

Illustration for 半途而废 (give up halfway)

More examples

遇到难题时，他不愿半途而废，而是向老师请教。yù dào nán tí shí tā bú yuàn bàn tú ér fèi ér shì xiàng lǎo shī qǐng jiào

When he faces a difficult problem, he does not give up halfway but instead asks his teacher for help.

Core concept

An effort starts toward a goal but is dropped partway through instead of being carried to completion.

Common phrases

  • 别半途而废bié bàn tú ér fèi

    don't give up halfway

  • 遇挫就半途而废yù cuò jiù bàn tú ér fèi

    give up halfway when faced with setbacks

  • 很容易半途而废hěn róng yì bàn tú ér fèi

    give up halfway easily

Similar words

放弃fàng qì: Giving up an effort or plan after deciding not to continue toward its goal.
中断zhōng duàn: Breaking off a task or activity for a time before resuming or finishing it.

Definition in Chinese

在事情进行到一半时停止，放弃继续完成，常带有消极评价。zài shì qíng jìn xíng dào yí bàn shí tíng zhǐ fàng qì jì xù wán chéng cháng dài yǒu xiāo jí píng jià

Word origin

The four characters combine 半 (bàn, "half"), 途 (tú, "road or course"), 而 (ér, "and then"), and 废 (fèi, "abandon") to describe leaving a path before its end.

Usage tips

  • English often uses "give up" for many kinds of stopping, while this Chinese idiom specifically highlights a failure to persist until completion.

Other meanings

  • give up onverb

Opposites

Related words

  • 半途bàn túmidway pointnoun

Word lists with this word