兜圈子

dōuquānzi

phrase #12,385

Meanings

1 to go around in circles
2 to beat about the bush

Characters

to wrap around; to go around

Examples

别兜圈子了，直接说吧。

Bié dōuquānzi le, zhíjiē shuō ba.

Stop beating around the bush and just say it.

我们在胡同里兜了半天圈子。

Wǒmen zài hútòng lǐ dōule bàntiān quānzi.

We went around in circles in the alleyways for ages.

Tips

usage

兜圈子 has both a literal meaning (going around in circles physically) and a figurative one (being evasive in speech). The figurative use is more common in daily conversation.

Stroke Order

兜 dōu

圈 quān

子 zǐ