羊毛出在羊身上

yángmáochūzàiyángshēnshàng

idiom

Meanings

1 the wool comes from the sheep's back
2 whatever is given is paid for in the end
3 you pay for any 'free' benefit one way or another

Characters

Examples

HSK 5

公司给员工的福利，归根结底也是羊毛出在羊身上。

Gōngsī gěi yuángōng de fúlì, guīgēnjiédǐ yě shì yángmáochūzàiyángshēnshàng.

Employee benefits, when you trace them back, also come out of the employees' own labor.

HSK 7-9

商家说免费送货，其实羊毛出在羊身上，已经算在价格里了。

Shāngjiā shuō miǎnfèi sònghuò, qíshí yángmáochūzàiyángshēnshàng, yǐjīng suàn zài jiàgé lǐ le.

The shop says shipping is free, but the wool comes from the sheep - it's already baked into the price.

HSK 7-9

保险理赔的钱羊毛出在羊身上，最终是大家分摊的。

Bǎoxiǎn lǐpéi de qián yángmáochūzàiyángshēnshàng, zuìzhōng shì dàjiā fēntān de.

Insurance payouts come from the sheep itself - ultimately everyone shares the cost.

Tips

usage

Standard cynical retort to anything advertised as 'free.' Very common in everyday consumer talk and economic commentary.

history

Recorded in 李宝嘉's late-Qing satirical novel 《官场现形记》, where a bribe is shrugged off because the costs will fall back on the same victims anyway.

Stroke Order

羊 yáng

毛 máo

出 chū

在 zài

身 shēn

上 shàng