煮熟的鴨子飛了

1. • the cooked duck flew away (proverb)
2. • to let a sure thing slip through one's fingers

     fig.

Character by character

• 煮(zhǔ)cook
• 熟(shú)ripe
• 的(de)marks possession and modification
• 鴨(yā)duck
• 子(zi)noun suffix, as in 椅子 yǐzi "chair"
• 飛(fēi)fly
• 了(le)marks a completed action