Chinese word dictionary

治丝益棼

zhì sī yì fén · lit. try to straighten out silk threads only to tangle them further (idiom); fig. to try to help but end up making things worse

Practice word

Word information

Simplified治丝益棼

Traditional治絲益棼

Pinyinzhì sī yì fén

Part of speechDictionary

HSK 3.0Not listed

HSK 2.0Not listed

Character breakdown

Study each Hanzi separately, then return to the complete word so pronunciation, meaning, and movement stay connected.

治zhì

to administer, to govern, to regulate

丝sī

silk, fine thread; wire; strings

益yì

to profit, to benefit; advantage

棼fén

rafters; disordered, confused

How to learn 治丝益棼

Listen once without reading, repeat the pinyin with its tones, then write every character in sequence. Finally, recall the complete meaning instead of memorizing each character as an isolated translation.

When the word appears in a sentence, check whether its part of speech and meaning match the definition shown here. Chinese words can change nuance with context.

Related vocabulary

Words with the same characters

Compare how a familiar Hanzi changes meaning inside another word.

利益lìyì

benefit; (in sb's) interest; CL:個|个[ge4]

有益yǒuyì

useful; beneficial; profitable

政治zhèngzhì

politics; political

治zhì

to rule; to govern; to manage; to control; to harness (a river); to treat (a disease); to wipe out (a pest); to punish; to research

治疗zhìliáo

to treat (an illness); medical treatment; therapy

防治fángzhì

to prevent and cure; prevention and cure