吃力不討好 [－－－讨－]

Jyutping hek3 lik6 bat1 tou2 hou2
Pinyin chī lì bù tǎo hǎo

Definitions (CC-CEDICT)
  1. arduous and thankless task (idiom); strenuous and unrewarding
Definitions (粵典–words.hk)
  1. 形容詞
    形容​工作​要​用​好多​勞力​同​心力​，​但​係​冇​人會​感激
    effortful but thankless; doing some hard work but not thanked for it; unappreciated
    • 既然呢樣嘢吃力不討好，你做乜要做唧？你做咗人哋都唔會多謝你㗎啦。
      既然呢样嘢吃力不讨好，你做乜要做唧？你做咗人哋都唔会多谢你㗎啦。
      gei3 jin4 ni1 joeng6 je5 hek3 lik6 bat1 tou2 hou2, nei5 zou6 mat1 jiu3 zou6 zek1? nei5 zou6 zo2 jan4 dei6 dou1 m4 wui5 do1 ze6 nei5 gaa3 laa1.
      Even though you put in a lot of effort for no thanks, why are you doing it anyway? Even if you complete it, others will not show their gratitude.
  2. 近義詞
    枉作小人
Definitions (Wiktionary)
  1. phrase, idiomatic, of a task, usually
    arduous and thankless; strenuous and unrewarding
Examples (Tatoeba—Mandarin-English)
  1. Mandarin
    翻译其实是一件吃力不讨好的事，因为一种语言在另一种语言中的对应物藏在往往隐藏在深不可测之处，翻译者需要百般寻觅，而且，挑剔的读者很难糊弄。
    翻譯其實是一件吃力不討好的事，因為一種語言在另一種語言中的對應物藏在往往隱藏在深不可測之處，翻譯者需要百般尋覓，而且，挑剔的讀者很難糊弄。
    fān yì qí shí shì yī jiàn chī lì bù tǎo hǎo de shì ， yīn wèi yī zhǒng yǔ yán zài lìng yī zhǒng yǔ yán zhòng dì duì yìng wù cáng zài wǎng wǎng yǐn cáng zài shēn bù kě cè zhī chù ， fān yì zhě xū yào bǎi bān xún mì ， ér qiě ， tiāo ti de dú zhě hěn nán hù nong 。
    • In reality, translation is akin to working for peanuts, since the corresponding meaning of something in one language is often hidden in some deep and impenetrable recesses of the other. As a result, the translator is forced to search all over... Never mind that the picky reader is very difficult to fool.
  2. Mandarin
    官僚的工作，真是吃力不讨好。
    官僚的工作，真是吃力不討好。
    guān liáo de gōng zuò ， zhēn shi chī lì bù tǎo hǎo 。
    • Despite your best efforts, your bureaucratic work was not rewarded.
Examples (粵典–words.hk)
  1. Cantonese
    既然呢样嘢吃力不讨好，你做乜要做唧？你做咗人哋都唔会多谢你㗎啦。
    既然呢樣嘢吃力不討好，你做乜要做唧？你做咗人哋都唔會多謝你㗎啦。
    gei3 jin4 ni1 joeng6 je5 hek3 lik6 bat1 tou2 hou2, nei5 zou6 mat1 jiu3 zou6 zek1? nei5 zou6 zo2 jan4 dei6 dou1 m4 wui5 do1 ze6 nei5 gaa3 laa1.
    • Even though you put in a lot of effort for no thanks, why are you doing it anyway? Even if you complete it, others will not show their gratitude.
  2. Cantonese
    吃力不讨好
    吃力不討好
    hek3 lik6 bat1 tou2 hou2
    • to get no thanks for one's hard work
    • to put in much hard work, but get very little result; to undertake a thankless task