mǎ马horsema马horsehū虎tigerhū虎tiger
Horse-horse-tiger-tiger — so-so, careless, half-assed.
Literal meaning
horse (马) — horse (马) — tiger (虎) — tiger (虎)
Origin
A folk story tells of a painter who, asked to draw a horse, drew a tiger by mistake. When asked to fix it, he just added "horse" features. His two sons saw the painting: one thought it was a horse and shot a real horse; the other thought it was a tiger and fought a real tiger. From there the phrase came to mean both "careless / sloppy" and (more lightly) "so-so."
Examples
Tā他de的gōng工zuò作zuò做de得mǎ马ma马hū虎hū虎。
His work is half-baked.
Zuì最jìn近zěn怎me么yàng样？— Mǎ马ma马hū虎hū虎。
How have you been? — So-so.
Usage & nuances
Two senses — 'careless' (negative) and 'so-so' (neutral, common reply). Casual register; very common spoken Chinese.
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