纸上谈兵 zhǐ shàng tán bīng

empty talk; only theory, no real skill

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency 29744th word

Definitions

  1. 1. fig. theoretical discussion that is worse than useless in practice
  2. 2. idle theorizing
  3. 3. armchair strategist
  4. 4. lit. military tactics on paper (idiom)
  5. 5. cf Zhao Kuo 赵括zhào kuò leading an army of 400,000 to total annihilation at battle of Changping 长平之战cháng píng zhī zhàn in 260 BC

Characters

Character Meaning
纸 zhǐ HSK 2
paper; classifier for documents, letter etc
上 shàng HSK 1
to go up; on top; above
谈 tán HSK 4
to discuss; to speak; to talk
兵 bīng HSK 5
soldiers; military; weapons