田忌賽馬 tián jì sài mǎ

win by smart strategy; use clever matchup

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency Unknown

Definitions

  1. 1. Tian Ji races his horses (and accepts one loss in order to ensure two wins) (idiom)

Characters

Character Meaning
田 tián HSK 6
field; farm; surname Tian
忌 jì HSK 6
to avoid or abstain from; scruple; fear
賽 sài
to compete; competition; match
馬 mǎ
horse; surname Ma