Definition
万金油 literally means 'balm for ten thousand gold pieces' — it originally referred to a common medicated balm (like Tiger Balm). In modern Chinese, it's used figuratively to describe someone who is a jack-of-all-trades but master of none, or something that can be applied to many situations but isn't specialized. The figurative sense is far more common in everyday speech than the literal one.
n.
(figurative) jack-of-all-tradesmaster of nonesomeone who can do a bit of everything but isn't an expert(literal) balmmedicated ointment
Examples
- 万金油，，。Tā zài gōngsī li jiù shì ge mò, shénme dōu huì yìdiǎn, dàn shénme dōu bù jīng.He's a jack-of-all-trades at the company — knows a bit of everything but isn't an expert at anything.
- ，万金油，。Zhège ruǎnjiàn gōngnéng hěn duō, dàn yǒurén shuō tā shì mò, méiyǒu héxīn jìngzhēnglì.This software has many features, but some say it's a jack-of-all-trades with no core competitiveness.
- 万金油，。Lǎo yí bèi de rén jiā lǐ cháng bèi mò, tóuténg nǎo rè jiù mǒ yìdiǎn.Older generations always kept balm at home — they'd rub a bit on for headaches or minor fevers.
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