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取长补短

qǔ cháng bǔ duǎn

4-character word Traditional 取長補短

What 取长补短 means

1. lit. use others' strengths to make up for one's weak points (idiom from Mencius)
2. to use this in place of that
3. what you lose on the swings, you win on the roundabouts

The characters in 取长补短

• 取qǔto take; to get; to choose
• 长chánglong; (bound form) length; (bound form) strong point; forte
• 补bǔto repair; to patch; to mend
• 短duǎnshort; brief; to lack