吃力不讨好

吃力不討好
chīlìbùtǎohǎo
arduous and thankless task (idiom); strenuous and unrewarding

CEDICT

  1. (idiomatic, of a task, etc.) arduous and thankless; strenuous and unrewarding
  2. arduous and thankless; strenuous and unrewarding

Wiktionary

费了许多力气不但得不到回报，反遭人嫌弃。

重編國語辭典

费了许多力气不但得不到回报，反遭人嫌弃

維基詞典

Entry Composition

1 吃力 chīlì
  1. to entail strenuous effort
  2. to toil at a task
  3. strenuous
  4. laborious
  5. strain
2 不 bù
  1. no; not so
  2. (bound form) not; un-
3 讨好 tǎohǎo
  1. to get the desired outcome
  2. to win favor by fawning on sb
  3. to curry favor with
  4. a fruitful outcome to reward one's labor

Related entries

费力不讨好 fèilìbùtǎohǎo arduous and thankless task (idiom); strenuous and unrewarding