twice the effort, half the result
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 3 examplesidiom
to get half the result with twice the effort; inefficient; counterproductive
Often used to criticize inefficient methods or strategies that waste resources. Frequently contrasted with its antonym 事半功倍 (half the effort, double the result).
Rú如
guǒ果
méi没
yǒu有
hǎo好
de的
fāng方
fǎ法
，
gōng工
zuò作
wǎng往
wǎng往
huì会
shì事
bèi倍
gōng功
bàn半
。
Without good methods, work often becomes counterproductive.
Zhè这
zhǒng种
dī低
xiào效
de的
guǎn管
lǐ理
fāng方
shì式
jiǎn简
zhí直
shì是
shì事
bèi倍
gōng功
bàn半
。
This kind of inefficient management is simply a waste of effort.
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Máng盲
mù目
jiā加
bān班
zhǐ只
huì会
shì事
bèi倍
gōng功
bàn半
，
zhòng重
yào要
de的
shì是
tí提
gāo高
xiào效
lǜ率
。
Working overtime blindly only leads to inefficiency; what matters is improving productivity.