tiến thoái lưỡng nan

Vietnamese

Alternative forms
  • (Southern Vietnam, dated) tấn thối lưỡng nan

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 進退兩難.

Pronunciation
  • (Hà Nội) IPA(key): [tiən˧˦ tʰwaːj˧˦ lɨəŋ˦ˀ˥ naːn˧˧]
  • (Huế) IPA(key): [tiəŋ˦˧˥ tʰwaːj˨˩˦ lɨəŋ˧˨ naːŋ˧˧]
  • (Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA(key): [tiəŋ˦˥ tʰ⁽ʷ⁾aːj˦˥ lɨəŋ˨˩˦ naːŋ˧˧]

Phrase

tiến thoái lưỡng nan

  1. (literal) it's difficult either to advance or to retreat
  2. between a rock and a hard place
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