进退两难 — “To be in a dilemma”
进退两难 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be in a dilemma”. To be caught in a difficult position where one can neither advance nor retreat. Literally, “difficult to advance or retreat”.
Frequency
进退两难 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 进jìn
- 退tuì
- 两liǎng
- 难nán
进退两难 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 进退两难
他在工作中遇到了一个难题，辞职吧，家庭开销是个问题；不辞职吧，又觉得没有发展空间，真是进退两难
He encountered a difficult problem at work; if he quit, household expenses would be an issue; if he didn't quit, he felt there was no room for development, truly caught in a dilemma.
Idioms Related to 进退两难
Synonyms of 进退两难
More idioms starting with 进
- jìn进rén人ruò若jiāng将jiā加zhū诸xī膝，，tuì退rén人ruò若jiāng将zhuì坠zhū诸yuān渊Elevate favorites, cast down dislikes
- jìn进fǔ俯tuì退fǔ俯inconsistent movement or posture
- jìn进lì利chú除hài害promote good, eliminate harm
- jìn进kě可yǐ以gōng攻，，jù据kě可yǐ以shǒu守strategic flexibility in offense and defense
- jìn进kě可yǐ以gōng攻，，tuì退kě可yǐ以shǒu守flexible in offense and defense
- jìn进kě可tì替bù不offer good strategies to eliminate flawed practices
- jìn进kě可tì替fǒu否Advance good to replace bad
- jìn进shàn善chéng惩jiān奸promote good, punish evil
- jìn进shàn善chéng惩è恶promote good and punish evil
- jìn进shàn善tuì退è恶promote good, dismiss evil
- jìn进shàn善chù黜è恶promote good, dismiss evil
- jìn进rǎng壤guǎng广dì地expand territory
Questions about 进退两难
- What does 进退两难 mean?
- 进退两难 (jìn tuì liǎng nán) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be in a dilemma”.
- How do you pronounce 进退两难?
- 进退两难 is pronounced jìn tuì liǎng nán in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 进退两难 literally mean?
- Literally, 进退两难 means “difficult to advance or retreat”. It is used to mean “to be in a dilemma”.
- What is the Chinese definition of 进退两难?
- 前进和后退都难。比喻事情无法决定，因而难以行动。