袖手旁观
xiùshǒu-pángguānTraditional 袖手旁觀
to stand by and do nothing
Every meaning
xiùshǒu-pángguān
- to stand by and do nothing
Its characters
- 袖xiùsleeve
- 手shǒuhand
- 旁pángside; beside
- 观guānto look at; to watch (as in 观看)
Words with 袖
Words with 手
Meanings are from Mandarin The Wild’s own dictionary. Levels follow the official HSK word list (the exam’s 2025 syllabus, levels 7–9 shown together).