得 而 复 失

dé ér fù shīdictionary entry

to lose what one has just obtained (idiom)

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-25707515c3f06261. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

得而復失得而复失 [de2 er2 fu4 shi1] /to lose what one has just obtained (idiom)/

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: 得而復失

得
dé
to obtain / to get / to gain / to catch (a disease) / proper / suitable / proud / contented / to allow / to permit / ready / finished
dè
used in 得瑟[dè se]
de
structural particle: used after a verb (or adjective as main verb), linking it to following phrase indicating effect, degree, possibility etc
děi
to have to / must / ought to / to need to
而
ér
and / as well as / and so / but (not) / yet (not) / (indicates causal relation) / (indicates change of state) / (indicates contrast)
复
fù
to go and return / to return / to resume / to return to a normal or original state / to repeat / again / to recover / to restore / to turn over / to reply / to answer / to reply to a letter / to retaliate / to carry out / to double / to overlap / complex (not simple) / compound / composite / double / diplo- / duplicate / overlapping / to duplicate
失
shī
to lose / to miss / to fail

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.