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偷工减料
偷工减料
偷工减料
偷工减料
偷工减料
偷工减料
偷工减料
偷工减料

偷工减料 — “To cut corners”

偷工减料 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to cut corners”. To skimp on work and materials; to do shoddy work by reducing labor and materials. Literally, “steal work and cut materials”.

Frequency

偷工减料 Pronunciation and Pinyin

  • 偷tōu
  • 工gōng
  • 减jiǎn
  • 料liào

偷工减料 Character Breakdown

CharacterPinyinStrokesMeaning
偷
tōu11to steal or do secretly
工
gōng3work, labor, industry, skill
减
jiǎn11reduce, decrease, subtract
料
liào10material, expect, feed

Example Sentence with 偷工减料

这家公司为了节省成本,经常在产品生产过程中偷工减料,最终导致客户投诉不断。
To save costs, this company often cuts corners in the product manufacturing process, which ultimately leads to continuous customer complaints.

Idioms Related to 偷工减料

Synonyms of 偷工减料

  • fū敷yǎn衍liǎo了shì事to do things perfunctorily

Antonyms of 偷工减料

  • yī一sī丝bù不gǒu苟meticulous and conscientious
  • jīng精diāo雕xì细kè刻meticulously carve and finely engrave

More idioms starting with 偷

  • tōu偷dōng东mō摸xī西to pilfer small things
  • tōu偷tōu偷mō摸mō摸do something stealthily or surreptitiously
  • tōu偷hé合qǔ取róng容fawn on others for favor
  • tōu偷hé合gǒu苟cóng从opportunistically conform to gain favor
  • tōu偷hé合gǒu苟róng容ingratiate and compromise for precarious existence
  • tōu偷shēng声xì细qì气speak in a soft and gentle voice
  • tōu偷tiān天huàn换rì日secretly alter truth for deception
  • tōu偷jiān奸qǔ取qiǎo巧gain advantage by cunning
  • tōu偷mèi媚qǔ取róng容fawn for favor
  • tōu偷ān安dàn旦xī夕seek temporary ease
  • tōu偷ān安gǒu苟qiě且seek temporary ease and muddle through
  • tōu偷hán寒sòng送nuǎn暖show thoughtful concern

Questions about 偷工减料

What does 偷工减料 mean?
偷工减料 (tōu gōng jiǎn liào) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to cut corners”.
How do you pronounce 偷工减料?
偷工减料 is pronounced tōu gōng jiǎn liào in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 偷工减料 literally mean?
Literally, 偷工减料 means “steal work and cut materials”. It is used to mean “to cut corners”.
What is the Chinese definition of 偷工减料?
原指商人为了牟取暴利而暗中降低产品质量,削减工料。现也指做事图省事,马虎敷衍。
Copy the pinyin for 偷工减料 →Choose tone marks or tone numbers and copy the complete four-character reading.Read Chinese vocabulary and idiom guides →Continue with words, phrases, and idioms explained through natural examples.

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