meaning of 三脚猫?

[tooironic]

What does 三脚猫 mean?

I always thought it meant something like 差劲 but apparently it can also mean "jack of all trades (master of none)"? Is that right?

[skylee]

I think it is used to describe someone's skill which is not good enough. I think it is an adjective, as in 三腳貓功夫, not a noun.

[andysun731]

"jack of all trades" means 万金油、多面手、万事通，may be used both as a commendatory term or a derogatory term.

三脚猫 is often used as a derogatory term and often followed by 功夫，which seems like a set phrase, meaning someone's 功夫 is poor.

[tooironic]

By "commendatory term" I assume you mean 褒义词? But how can that be when "poor" (by which you mean "差劲", or something else?) is by its very definition a bad word/derogatory term (贬义词)?

[最爱狮子和熊]

means not good enough or not have enough ability

[andysun731]

I found two English explanations of "jack of all trades"：

(1)a person who can do passable work at various tasks

(2)someone who can do many different types of work, but who often is not very skilled at any of them

So I said it might sometimes be used as a commendatory term. Whether it is commendatory or not, it emphasizes "versatile".

But 三脚猫 is used as a derogatory term, and uniquely used before 功夫. I put a wrong word there... I should edit it...