與虎謀皮

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Chinese

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and; to give; together with
and; to give; together with; take part in; (interrog. part.)
 
tiger to plan; seek; scheme leather; skin; fur
trad. (與虎謀皮)
simp. (与虎谋皮)
Literally: “to ask a tiger for its skin”.

Etymology

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Originally 與狐謀皮与狐谋皮 (yǔhúmóupí, “to ask a fox for its skin”). See the entry for details.

(, fox) was replaced with (tiger) because the two characters have similar pronunciation. In addition, tiger is a fierce animal, making this form reflecting the meaning more.

Pronunciation

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Idiom

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與虎謀皮

  1. to request others (usually bad people) for something against their interests (which is impossible)