1 to use an opponent's own methods to obtain retribution (idiom, from Song dynasty neo-Confucianist Zhu Xi 朱熹); to get revenge by playing sb back at his own game
2 to give sb a taste of his own medicine
倾国倾城
qīng guó qīng chéng
1 lit. capable of causing the downfall of a city or state (idiom)
2 fig. (of a woman) devastatingly beautiful
3 also written 傾城傾國|倾城倾国[qīng chéng qīng guó]
倾城倾国
qīng chéng qīng guó
1 lit. capable of causing the downfall of a city or state (idiom)
2 fig. (of a woman) devastatingly beautiful
兵临城下
bīng lín chéng xià
1 soldiers at the city walls (idiom); fig. at a critical juncture
唱空城计
chàng kōng chéng jì
1 lit. to sing “The Empty City Stratagem” (idiom)
2 fig. to put up a bluff to conceal one's weakness
3 (jocularly) (of a place etc) to be empty
4 (of one's stomach) to be rumbling
围城打援
wéi chéng dǎ yuán
1 to besiege and strike the relief force (idiom); strategy of surrounding a unit to entice the enemy to reinforce, then striking the new troops
城门失火,殃及池鱼
chéng mén shī huǒ , yāng jí chí yú
1 a fire in the city gates is also a calamity for the fish in the moat (idiom); the bystander will also suffer
2 fig. you can't escape responsibility for your actions
3 ask not for whom the bell tolls - it tolls for thee
攻城略地
gōng chéng lu:è dì
1 to take cities and seize territories (idiom)
文治武功
wén zhì wǔ gōng
1 political and military achievements (idiom)
治丧从俭
zhì sàng cóng jiǎn
1 to be frugal in attending to funeral rites (idiom)
治大国若烹小鲜
zhì dà guó ruò pēng xiǎo xiān
1 ruling a large nation is like cooking a small delicacy (idiom)
2 effective government requires minimal intervention
满城风雨
mǎn chéng fēng yǔ
1 lit. wind and rain through the town (idiom); fig. a big scandal
2 an uproar
3 the talk of the town
众志成城
zhòng zhì chéng chéng
1 unity of will is an impregnable stronghold (idiom)
背城借一
bèi chéng jiè yī
1 to make a last-ditch stand before the city wall (idiom); to fight to the last ditch
2 to put up a desperate struggle
胸有城府
xiōng yǒu chéng fǔ
1 subtle way of thinking (idiom); hard to fathom
2 deep and shrewd
胸无城府
xiōng wú chéng fǔ
1 open and candid (idiom); not hiding anything
2 ingenuous
臻于郅治
zhēn yú zhì zhì
1 to attain a state of perfect governance (idiom)
高城深池
gāo chéng shēn chí
1 high walls and deep moat (idiom); impenetrable defense
齐家治国
qí jiā zhì guó
1 to regulate the family and rule the state (idiom)
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