游移不定

yóuyí-búdìng
idiom

Meanings

  1. 1 to waver indecisively
  2. 2 to fluctuate without resolve
  3. 3 to hesitate; can't make up one's mind

Examples

HSK 4
Tā yóuyí-búdìng, zuìhòu cuòguò le jīhuì.
He kept wavering and ended up missing the chance.
HSK 7-9
Shìchǎng yóuyí-búdìng, tóuzīzhě dōu zài guānwàng.
The market is fluctuating; investors are all standing by.

Tips

history
From the Han-era 释名·释车 by 刘熙: describing the 游环, a sliding ring on a chariot harness - 游移前却,无定处也 ('moving forward and back, with no fixed place'). The mechanical image of a ring sliding along a strap became the metaphor for indecision.

Stroke Order

yóu
dìng