- lit. to lead away a goat while passing by (idiom)
- fig. to opportunistically pocket sb's possessions and walk off
Characters
- 顺 (順): to obey; to follow; to arrange; to make reasonable; along; favorable
- 手 (手): hand; (formal) to hold; person engaged in certain types of work; person skilled in certain types of work; personal(ly); convenient; classifier for skill; CL:雙|双[shuang1],隻|只[zhi1]
- 牵 (牽): to lead along; to pull (an animal on a tether); (bound form) to involve; to draw in
- 羊 (羊): surname Yang
Resources
- Wiktionary: 顺手牵羊
- MDBG: 顺手牵羊
- Examples with 顺手牵羊 on Tatoeba
Examples
他不是在偷皮夹子，他是顺手牵羊。