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脚踏两条船

jiǎo tà liǎng tiáo chuándictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
lit. to stand with each foot in a different boat (idiom) / fig. to have it both ways / to run after two hares / (especially) to have two lovers at the same time
Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-19de57013f9e2432. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

腳踏兩條船 脚踏两条船 [jiao3 ta4 liang3 tiao2 chuan2] /lit. to stand with each foot in a different boat (idiom)/fig. to have it both ways/to run after two hares/(especially) to have two lovers at the same time/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

Other forms in these source records: 腳踏兩條船

  • 脚
    jiǎo

    foot / leg (of an animal or an object) / base (of an object) / CL:雙|双[shuāng],隻|只[zhī] / classifier for kicks

    jué

    role (variant of 角[jué])

  • 踏
    tā

    see 踏實|踏实[tā shi]

    tà

    to tread / to stamp / to step on / to press a pedal / to investigate on the spot

  • 两
    liǎng

    two / both / some / a few / tael, unit of weight equal to 50 grams (modern) or 1⁄16 of a catty 斤[jīn] (old)

  • 条
    tiáo

    strip / item / article / clause (of law or treaty) / classifier for long thin things (ribbon, river, road, trousers etc)

  • 船
    chuán

    boat / vessel / ship / CL:條|条[tiáo],艘[sōu],隻|只[zhī]

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.