挑三嫌四 tiāo sān xián sì pick and choose

Explanation

形容挑挑拣拣，嫌这嫌那。

Describes someone who is very picky and always finds something to complain about.

Origin Story

从前，有个财主，家财万贯，却是个挑三嫌四的主儿。他娶亲的时候，媒婆给他介绍了十几个姑娘，他总是嫌这嫌那，不是嫌人家长得不好看，就是嫌人家家境不好，总之就没有一个入他的眼。媒婆们都跑烦了，都说这财主太难伺候了。最后，他娶了个又丑又穷的姑娘，结果婚后生活一团糟，他后悔莫及。这个故事告诉我们，人不能太挑剔，要懂得珍惜眼前所拥有的一切。

cóng qián, yǒu gè cáizhǔ, jiā cái wàn guàn, què shì gè tiāo sān xián sì de zhǔ ér. tā qǔ qīn de shíhòu, méi pó gěi tā jièshào le shí jǐ ge gūniang, tā zǒngshì xián zhè xián nà, bùshì xián rénjiā zhǎng de bù hǎokàn, jiùshì xián rénjiā jiā jìng bù hǎo, zhōngzhī jiù méiyǒu yīgè rù tā de yǎn. méi pó men dōu pǎo fán le, dōu shuō zhè cáizhǔ tài nán sìhou le. zuìhòu, tā qǔ le ge yòu chǒu yòu qióng de gūniang, jiéguǒ hūnhòu shēnghuó yī tuán zāo, tā hòu huǐ mò jí. zhège gùshì gàosù wǒmen, rén bùnéng tài tiāo tì, yào dǒngde zhēnxī yǎn qián suǒ yǒngyǒu de yīqiè.

Once upon a time, there was a rich man who was very picky. When he wanted to get married, the matchmaker introduced him to several girls, but he was always dissatisfied. Either he found the girls not pretty enough or their families were too poor for him. Finally, he married an ugly and poor girl, and his life after marriage became a disaster. He regretted his choice very much. This story teaches us not to be too picky and to cherish what we have.

Usage

作谓语、定语；形容过分挑剔

zuò wèiyǔ, dìngyǔ; xiángróng guòfèn de tiāotì

As predicate, attributive; describes excessive pickiness

Examples

• 他这个人就是挑三嫌四，很难伺候。

  tā zhège rén jiùshì tiāo sān xián sì, hěn nán sìhou

  He is very picky and difficult to please.

• 买东西的时候，她总是挑三嫌四，半天也选不出来。

  mǎi dōngxi de shíhòu, tā zǒngshì tiāo sān xián sì, bàntiān yě xuǎn bu chūlái

  When shopping, she always picks and chooses, and it takes her a long time to choose.

• 面试的时候，用人单位挑三嫌四，难以抉择

  miànshì de shíhòu, yòng rén dānwèi tiāo sān xián sì, nán yǐ juézé

  During interviews, employers are picky and difficult to choose from

Related Idioms

• 挑剔

• 拣选

Opposite Idioms

• 满意

• 不挑剔