be persnickety; show cleverness in trivial matters
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 3 examplesidiom
to be overly clever about trivial details; to show off one's perspicacity in minor matters
literaryOften used critically to describe someone who focuses on minor details to demonstrate their intelligence, while possibly neglecting the bigger picture. Derived from the Daoist concept that excessive scrutiny is inferior to the unchanging way.
Tā他
zǒng总
shì是
chá察
chá察
wéi为
míng明
，
duì对
bié别
rén人
de的
xiǎo小
cuò错
wù误
zhuā抓
zhù住
bù不
fàng放
。
He is always nitpicky, never letting go of others' minor mistakes.
Zuò做
lǐng领
dǎo导
bù不
néng能
chá察
chá察
wéi为
míng明
，
yào要
xué学
huì会
zhuā抓
dà大
fàng放
xiǎo小
。
As a leader, one shouldn't be persnickety; one must learn to focus on major issues and let go of minor ones.
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Chá察
chá察
wéi为
míng明
de的
rén人
wǎng往
wǎng往
hū忽
lüè略
le了
zhěng整
tǐ体
de的
dà大
jú局
。
People who are captious often neglect the overall big picture.