竹篮打水 zhúlándǎshuǐ wasted effort Origin Definitions Defs Strokes Stroke Words Sentences Sents 竹篮打水一场空 zhúlándǎshuǐyīchǎngkōng all in vain Drawing water with a bamboo basket; to struggle only for it all to come to nothing or be a complete failure.竹篮打水，一场空 zhúlándǎshuǐyīchángkōng wasted effort Using a wicker basket to draw water; a metaphor for all one's efforts being in vain.