螳臂当车

螳臂當車

tángbì-dāngchē

idiom

Meanings

1 a mantis trying to stop a chariot (idiom)
2 to overestimate oneself and attempt the impossible
3 futile resistance

Characters

to block; oppose

Examples

HSK 5

小公司硬碰大企业，简直是螳臂当车。

Xiǎo gōngsī yìng pèng dà qǐyè, jiǎnzhí shì tángbì-dāngchē.

A small company taking on a giant corporation head-on is sheer mantis-versus-chariot.

HSK 7-9

凭你一个人想阻止整个改革，无异于螳臂当车。

Píng nǐ yīgè rén xiǎng zǔzhǐ zhěnggè gǎigé, wúyìyú tángbì-dāngchē.

For one person to try to stop the entire reform is no different from a mantis trying to halt a chariot.

Tips

history

From 《庄子·人间世》: 怒其臂以当车辙，不知其不胜任也 - 'angrily raising its forelegs to block the chariot's track, unaware that it cannot prevail.' Zhuangzi's image for self-destructive overconfidence.

memory

Picture it literally: a mantis (螳) raising its arms (臂) to block (当) a chariot (车). The image is the meaning.

Stroke Order

螳 táng

臂 bì

当 dāng

车 chē