作繭自縛 zuò jiǎn zì fù

DEFINITIONS

  1. to spin a cocoon around oneself (idiom); enmeshed in a trap of one's own devising
  2. hoist by his own petard

CHARACTERS

作 zuò
HSK 1
make; work; compose, write; act, perform
繭 jiǎn cocoon; callus, blister
自 zì
HSK 3
self, private, personal; from
縛 fù to tie