"spin your wheels" in Chinese (Simplified)

• 原地踏步
• 徒劳无功

Definition

表示做了很多努力却没有取得进展或成效。

Usage Notes (Chinese (Simplified))

口语表达，用于形容努力了但毫无进展的情形。常用在学习、工作等话题。与“原地踏步”意思类似。

Examples

I studied all night, but I was just spinning my wheels.

我整晚都在学习，但其实只是**原地踏步**。

If you keep doing the same thing, you'll just spin your wheels.

如果你一直做同样的事，你只会**徒劳无功**。

They tried to fix the machine, but they were spinning their wheels.

他们试图修机器，但其实在**原地踏步**。

It feels like we're just spinning our wheels with this project.

我觉得我们在这个项目上只是**原地踏步**。

You’ve been spinning your wheels on that report for hours. Need some help?

你已经在那份报告上**徒劳无功**好几个小时了。需要帮忙吗？

Sometimes it’s better to step back than to spin your wheels.

有时候后退一步比一直**原地踏步**更好。