龜跤趖出來
Chinese
| a turtle or tortoise's leg or foot | to crawl; to creep | a verbal complement indicating a process of completing or accomplishing | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| trad. (龜跤趖出來) | 龜跤 | 趖 | 出來 | |
| simp. (龟跤趖出来) | 龟跤 | 趖 | 出来 | |
Pronunciation
- Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): ku-kha sô--chhut-lâi
- Southern Min
- (Hokkien)
- Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ku-kha sô--chhut-lâi
- Tâi-lô: ku-kha sô--tshut-lâi
- (Hokkien)
Idiom
龜跤趖出來
- (Hokkien) to give oneself away; to unintentionally reveal hidden information
- 有法有破真利害 當伊沒朝倒拋獅 妖術算是迷目代 即時龜脚趖出來 [Taiwanese Hokkien, trad.]
- From: 《正派三國歌·第二回·上冊》
- ū hoat ū phòa chin lī-hāi, tng i bē tiâu tò-pha-sai, iau-su̍t sǹg-sī bê-ba̍k tāi, chi̍t-sî ku-kha sô--chhut-lâi [Pe̍h-ōe-jī]
- (please add an English translation of this usage example)
有法有破真利害 当伊没朝倒抛狮 妖术算是迷目代 即时龟脚趖出来 [Taiwanese Hokkien, simp.]- Taⁿ mài koh編落去--à，「龜腳趖出來」都iáu m̄知影，真正加講加漏氣--è，瞞者瞞不識，識者不能瞞，mài做就無chit款嚥氣代？ [Taiwanese Hokkien, trad.]
- From: Lahjih. (2007, July 29). 龜腳趖出來 [The Turtle's Feet Emerge]. In 台灣諺語鹹酸甜 [The Sweet and Sour of Taiwanese Proverbs]
- Taⁿ mài koh pian--lo̍h-khì -- à, “ku-kha sô--chhut-lâi” to iáu m̄ chai-iáⁿ, chin-chiàⁿ ke kóng ke làu-khì -- è, môa chiá môa put sek, sek chiá put-lêng môa, mài chò chiū bô chit khoán iàn-khì tāi? [Pe̍h-ōe-jī]
- Come now, stop inventing more excuses — the turtle's feet are already sticking out, yet you seem unaware of how exposed you are, making this situation increasingly embarrassing. While you might fool those who don't know what's really going on, you can't deceive those who do. If you had simply been honest from the start, wouldn't you have avoided all this unnecessary distress?
Taⁿ mài koh编落去--à，「龟脚趖出来」都iáu m̄知影，真正加讲加漏气--è，瞒者瞒不识，识者不能瞒，mài做就无chit款咽气代？ [Taiwanese Hokkien, simp.]- Tī2000年台灣大選，李前總統一句「捾籃仔，假燒香」，就互某一個候選人的龜腳、馬腳趖趖出來。 [Taiwanese Hokkien, trad.]
- From: 陳主顯. (2006, July 31). 鼓不打不響 [The drum won't sound unless struck]. 本土信徒 [Local Believers].
- Tī 2000 nî Tâi-oân tāi-soán, Lí Chêng-chóng-thóng chi̍t kù “kōaⁿ nâ-á, ké sio-hiuⁿ”, chiū hō͘ bó͘ chi̍t ê hāu-soán-jîn ê ku-kha, bé-kha sô sô--chhut-lâi. [Pe̍h-ōe-jī]
- During Taiwan's 2000 presidential election, former President Lee's single observation — 'Carrying a basket while pretending to burn incense' — caused a certain candidate's true intentions to emerge like a turtle's feet sticking out from its shell.
Tī2000年台湾大选，李前总统一句「捾篮仔，假烧香」，就互某一个候选人的龟脚、马脚趖趖出来。 [Taiwanese Hokkien, simp.]
Synonyms
References
- “龜跤趖出來”, in 教育部臺灣台語常用詞辭典 [Dictionary of Frequently-Used Taiwanese Taigi] (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2025.