DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT
強扭的瓜不甜
简 强扭的瓜不甜 · 繁 強扭的瓜不甜Mandarin · pinyin qiǎng niǔ de guā bù tián
Meanings
- lit. if you have to use force to break a melon off the vine, it won't taste sweet (because it's only when the melon is ripe that it can be removed with just a slight twist) (idiom)
- fig. if sth is not meant to be, it's no use trying to force it to happen
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Mandarin tones
3–3–5–1–4–2 · qiang3 niu3 de5 gua1 bu4 tian2
Compare attested words with these syllables ↗Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.
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Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense
Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section
Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.
proverb
- something done grudgingly will not produce satisfactory results
Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history
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