贪多嚼不烂

貪多嚼不爛
tānduōjiáobùlàn
idiom

Meanings

  1. 1 bite off more than you can chew
  2. 2 trying to do too much at once results in poor outcomes
  3. 3 greed for quantity ruins quality

Examples

Xué zhème duō mén kè, xiǎoxīn tān duō jiáo bù làn.
Taking on so many courses — be careful you don't bite off more than you can chew.
Zuò xiàngmù yào zhuānzhù, tān duō jiáo bù làn fǎn'ér huài shì.
Stay focused on the project — taking on too much will only mess things up.

Tips

history
Recorded in · (Líng Méngchū)'s 《惊奇》, then quoted in 《红楼梦第九: '身子保重' — Jia Zheng warns Baoyu not to overload his studies. The image is purely physical: cram too much food in your mouth and you can't chew it down.
memory
Literally 'greedy for too much, can't chew it through.' Use it for studying, taking on projects, reading lists, or even buying too many groceries — anywhere quantity hurts quality.

Stroke Order

tān
duō
jiáo
làn