成也萧何，败也萧何
chéng​yě​xiāo​hé​bài​yě​xiāo​hé

be both one's success and one's failure

  1. 成 chéng verb
    to succeed
    to succeed; to finish; to be completed
  2. 也 yě adjective
    [classical particle]
    (literary) particle used at the end of a sentence to indicate a judgment, explanation, or to strengthen an affirmative or interrogative mood; or used mid-sentence after a word or phrase to indicate a pause or emphasize the topic
  3. 萧何 蕭何 xiāo​hé
    Xiao He
    Xiao He (died 193 BC), a famous statesman and chancellor who helped found the Han Dynasty; he was a key advisor to 刘邦 liú​bāng during the Chu-Han Contention.
  4. ， bài
    non-Chinese
  5. 败 敗 bài verb
    to be defeated
    to lose a war, competition, or game; to fail at a task
  6. 也 yě adjective
    [classical particle]
    (literary) particle used at the end of a sentence to indicate a judgment, explanation, or to strengthen an affirmative or interrogative mood; or used mid-sentence after a word or phrase to indicate a pause or emphasize the topic
  7. 萧何 蕭何 xiāo​hé
    Xiao He
    Xiao He (died 193 BC), a famous statesman and chancellor who helped found the Han Dynasty; he was a key advisor to 刘邦 liú​bāng during the Chu-Han Contention.