不是鱼死就是网破 bù shì yú sǐ jiù shì wǎng pò

fig. it's a life-and-death struggle

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency Unknown

Definitions

  1. 1. fig. it's a life-and-death struggle
  2. 2. lit. either the fish dies or the net gets torn (idiom)
  3. 3. it's either him or me

Characters

Character Meaning
不 bù HSK 1
not; no; (negative prefix)
是 shì HSK 1
to be; is; are
鱼 yú HSK 2
fish; surname Yu
死 sǐ HSK 4
to die; extremely; inflexible
就 jiù HSK 2
at once; right away; as soon as
是 shì HSK 1
to be; is; are
网 wǎng HSK 3
net; network
破 pò HSK 4
broken; to break, split or cleave; damaged