左顾右盼

• 拼音: zuǒ gù yòu pàn
• 汉字拆解: 左 = 工 + 手 (work + hand — left); 顾 = 雇 + 页 (employ + page — to look back); 右 = 口 + 手 (mouth + hand — right); 盼 = 目 + 分 (eye + divide — to look eagerly)

含义

To look left and right; to glance around in all directions. Describes someone who is distracted, hesitant, or surveying the surroundings rather than focusing ahead.

A four-character idiom carrying a negative connotation of indecisiveness, lack of focus, or anxious scanning. Can describe physical behaviour (looking around nervously) or a figurative inability to commit to a course of action. Occasionally used neutrally to describe careful observation.

例句

1. 他走进考场后左顾右盼，神情明显慌乱，引起了监考老师的注意，随即被叫到一旁询问。
2. 在重大政策决策面前，领导层不能左顾右盼、犹豫不决，必须迅速作出明确判断并付诸行动。
3. 小男孩第一次来到这座繁华的商业街，左顾右盼，对眼前目不暇接的新鲜事物充满了好奇。

用法指南

语境: behaviour, social commentary, literature, daily life

语气: mildly critical

正确说法

• 面对两家公司抛出的橄榄枝，他始终左顾右盼，迟迟无法下定决心，错失了最佳的入职时机。(Faced with offers from two companies, he kept looking left and right, unable to make up his mind, and missed the optimal moment to join.)
• 在这种需要当机立断的紧急情况下，左顾右盼只会让局势进一步恶化，必须立即采取行动。(In an emergency that demands an immediate decision, looking around hesitantly will only make the situation worse — action must be taken at once.)

错误说法

• 我走路时左顾右盼以确保安全 — while physically looking around for safety, this idiom carries a connotation of distraction or indecision; use 环顾四周 or 仔细观察周围情况 for cautious awareness

起源与历史

左顾 (to look left) + 右盼 (to look right) — a parallel four-character structure

文化背景

时代: Classical

世代: All ages

社会背景: Universal