半途而廢

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See also: 半途而废

Chinese

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halfway; midway
and; as well as; but (not)
and; as well as; but (not); yet (not); (shows causal relation); (shows change of state); (shows contrast)
 
abolish; crippled
trad. (半途而廢) 半途
simp. (半途而废) 半途

Etymology

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From the Doctrine of the Mean (《中庸》) in the Book of Rites:

子曰:「後世君子半涂而廢。…… [Classical Chinese, trad.]
子曰:「后世君子半涂而废。…… [Classical Chinese, simp.]
From: The Book of Rites, c. 4th – 2nd century BCE, translated based on James Legge's version
Zǐyuē: “Sù yǐn xíng guài, hòushì yǒu shù yān, wú fú wéi zhī yǐ. Jūnzǐ zūn dào ér xíng, bàntú ér fèi, wú fúnéng yǐ yǐ....... [Pinyin]
The Master said, "To live in obscurity, and yet practice wonders, in order to be mentioned with honor in future ages: this is what I do not do. The good man tries to proceed according to the right path, but when he has gone halfway, he abandons it: I am not able so to stop. []

Pronunciation

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Idiom

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半途而廢

  1. to give up halfway through a task; to not finish what one has started