畫地為牢
huà​dì​wéi​láo

to restrict within a circle

  • created sense approved 画地为牢/畫地為牢 · huà​dì​wéi​láo · to restrict within a circle — "Initial import from upstream dictionary"

    画地为牢 / 畫地為牢

    huà​dì​wéi​láo

    to restrict within a circle

    (idiom) literally to draw a circle on the ground as a prison; describes restricting someone's activities or movements to a very narrow area or specific sphere

    画 (literal) → 画/畫 · huà · to draw 地 (literal) → 地 · dì · earth 为 (literal) → 为/為 · wéi · to be 牢 (literal) → 牢 · láo · prison

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

    created sense