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騎驢找馬

简骑驴找马 · 繁騎驢找馬

Mandarin · pinyin qí lǘ zhǎo mǎ

(idiom) (coll.) to continue in an unsatisfactory job (or romantic relationship etc) while actively looking for a better one

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Characters in this entry

騎: Look up this written character
驢: Look up this written character
找: zhǎo · search, seek, look for; find
馬: Look up this written character
骑: qí · ride horseback; mount; cavalry
驴: lǘ · donkey, ass
马: mǎ · horse; surname; Kangxi radical 187

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Mandarin tones

2–2–3–3 · qi2 lu:2 zhao3 ma3

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

phrase

(figurative, colloquial) to settle for what one has for the moment (e.g. job, girlfriend, etc.) while actively looking for something better

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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