中箭落马 zhòng jiàn luò mǎ

DEFINITIONS

  1. lit. to be struck by an arrow and fall from one's horse
  2. to suffer a serious setback (idiom)

CHARACTERS

中 zhòng
HSK 1
central; center, middle; in the midst of; hit (target); attain
箭 jiàn
HSK 6
arrow; type of bamboo
落 luò
HSK 4
fall, drop; net income, surplus
马 mǎ
HSK 3
horse; surname; KangXi radical 187