成事不足，败事有余 in English cheng2 shi4 bu4 zu2 , bai4 shi4 you3 yu2 Meaning

Meanings

  • unable to accomplish anything but liable to spoil everything (idiomatic expression)
  • unable to do anything right
  • never make, but always mar

Simplified Characters

成 事 不 足 ， 败 事 有 余

Traditional Characters

成 事 不 足 ， 敗 事 有 餘

Pinyin

cheng2 shi4 bu4 zu2 , bai4 shi4 you3 yu2

Literal

Literal explanation, with pronunciation and meaning of each character.

成cheng2surname Cheng 事shi4matter 不bu4(negative prefix) 足zu2excessive ， 败bai4to defeat 事shi4matter 有you3to have 余yu2surname Yu