快刀斷亂麻
kuài​dāo​duàn​luàn​má

to cut the Gordian knot

  • created sense approved 快刀断乱麻/快刀斷亂麻 · kuài​dāo​duàn​luàn​má · to cut the Gordian knot — "Initial import from upstream dictionary"

    快刀断乱麻 / 快刀斷亂麻

    kuài​dāo​duàn​luàn​má

    to cut the Gordian knot

    A quick sword cuts through tangled hemp; to take decisive action to solve a complex or messy problem.

    快刀 (literal) → 快刀 · kuài​dāo · sharp knife 断 (literal) → 断/斷 · duàn · to break 乱麻 (literal) → 乱麻/亂麻 · luàn​má · mess

    Changed: simplified, traditional, gloss, definition, pinyin, variant pinyin, variants, separable parts, decomposition

    created sense