Definition
争分夺秒 (zhēng fēn duó miǎo) is a four-character idiom meaning 'to race against time' or 'to make every second count'. It literally describes fighting over every minute and snatching every second, and is used in urgent situations like disaster rescue or exam preparation. The phrase is often followed by 地 (de) when used adverbially before a verb.
phrase
to race against timeto make every second count
Examples
- ，争分夺秒。Zài zāinàn xiànchǎng, jiùyuán duì zhēng fēn duó miǎo de xúnzhǎo xìngcúnzhě.At the disaster site, the rescue team raced against time to find survivors.
- ，争分夺秒。Gāokǎo qián yí gè yuè, tā měitiān zhēng fēn duó miǎo de fùxí.In the month before the college entrance exam, he made every second count by reviewing every day.
- ，争分夺秒，。Gōngqī hěn jǐn, gōngrénmen zhēng fēn duó miǎo, zhōngyú ànshí wánchéng le rènwu.The deadline was tight, so the workers raced against time and finally finished the task on schedule.
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