tau1 gai1 m4 dou2 sit6 zaa1 mai5偷雞唔到蝕揸米偷鸡唔到食揸米

Jyutpingtau1 gai1 m4 dou2 sit6 zaa1 mai5

Yaletāu gāi m̀h dóu siht jā máih

語句

Definition

To try to gain an advantage but end up suffering a loss instead; to lose both the bait and the fish.

colloquialmoneyother

How it's used

This idiom describes a situation where a calculated risk backfires, resulting in a net loss instead of the expected profit. It is often used to warn someone against overly ambitious or greedy schemes that lack a solid foundation. The imagery of losing the bait while failing to catch the prize captures the frustration of a failed gamble perfectly.

Examples

nam2諗zyu6住caau2炒gu2股zaan6賺cin2錢，dim2點zi1知tau1偷gai1雞m4唔dou3到sit6蝕zaa1揸mai5米。

I thought I could make money trading stocks, but I ended up losing everything.

nei5你gam3咁joeng2樣gaau2搞faat3法，siu2小sam1心zeoi3最hau6後tau1偷gai1雞m4唔dou3到sit6蝕zaa1揸mai5米aa4呀。

Be careful with that approach, or you might end up losing more than you gain.

Common phrases

gaau2搞dou3到tau1偷gai1雞m4唔dou3到sit6蝕zaa1揸mai5米

to end up in a situation where one loses more than they gain

Common mistake

Learners often mistake this for a general term for failure, but it specifically implies that the failure was caused by one's own attempt to gain an unfair or risky advantage.