食鸡肋

食雞肋

shíjīlèi

idiom

Meanings

1 to do something of little value that is still hard to give up
2 to pursue a tasteless but not-quite-worthless undertaking

Characters

Examples

这份工作薪水低又无聊，真是食鸡肋，弃之可惜。

Zhè fèn gōngzuò xīnshuǐ dī yòu wúliáo, zhēn shì shíjīlèi, qì zhī kěxī.

The pay is low and the work is dull, but quitting feels like a waste — a real chicken-rib situation.

继续投资等于食鸡肋，放弃又舍不得。

Jìxù tóuzī děngyú shíjīlèi, fàngqì yòu shěbude.

Pouring more money in is nibbling a chicken rib, but letting go feels like a loss too.

Tips

history

From 《三国志·魏志》: when Cao Cao at Hanzhong mumbled '鸡肋' (chicken ribs) as the night's password, his secretary Yang Xiu decoded it as 'not worth eating, yet a shame to throw away' — and correctly predicted the army would withdraw.

Stroke Order

食 shí

鸡 jī

肋 lèi