吐絲自縛 tǔ sī zì fù

trap oneself with own plan; backfire on oneself

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency Unknown

Definitions

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

Characters

Character Meaning
吐 tǔ HSK 5
to spit; to say; to put
絲 sī
silk; thread; trace
自 zì HSK 3
self; oneself; from
縛 fù
to bind; to tie; Taiwan pr. fú