一ひと筋すじ縄なわ

noun

a single rope; a piece of rope

Literal meaning: one strand of rope. Rarely used outside the idiom 一筋縄ではいかない.

• 一ひと筋すじ縄なわでは縛しばれないほど暴あばれた。

  He struggled so wildly that a single rope couldn't hold him.

noun

ordinary means; straightforward method

Almost exclusively used in the negative idiom 一筋縄ではいかない, meaning 'not straightforward', 'tricky', or 'hard to deal with'. The word itself is not used independently.

See also: 一筋縄ではいかない

• 彼かれは一ひと筋すじ縄なわではいかない相あい手てだ。

  He is a tough person to deal with.

• この問もん題だいは一ひと筋すじ縄なわではいかない。

  This problem is not easily solved.