半筹莫展半筹不展bàn chóu mò zhǎncannot do a thing; one’s calculations fail halfway
❍ 他那颗心又僵硬了似的～。(茅盾《子夜》493) His mind was numb.
❍ 周瑜虽能用计，岂能出诸葛亮之料乎！略用小谋，使周瑜半筹不展； …… (《三国演义》464) Let Zhou Yu employ all his ruses; do you think he can get beyond me? Let me act for you and his calculations will always fail halfway… |