| 虎头蛇尾 |
hǔ tóu shé wěi |
lit. tiger's head, snake's tail (idiom); fig. a strong start but weak finish |
| 虎 |
hǔ |
tiger / CL:只 |
| 头 |
tóu |
head / hair style / the top / end / beginning or end / a stub / remnant / chief / boss / side / aspect / first / leading / classifier for pigs or livestock / CL:个 |
| 头 |
tou |
suffix for nouns |
| 蛇 |
shé |
variant of 蛇 |
| 蛇 |
shé |
snake / serpent / CL:条 |
| 蛇 |
yí |
used in 委蛇 |
| 尾 |
wěi |
tail / remainder / remnant / extremity / sixth of the 28 constellations / classifier for fish |
| 尾 |
yǐ |
horse's tail / pointed posterior section of a locust etc |