項莊舞劍,意在沛公

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Chinese

[edit]
Xiang Zhuang to dance; to wield; to brandish (double-edged) sword
idea; meaning; wish
idea; meaning; wish; desire; Italy (abbrev.)
 
(located) at; in; exist
(located) at; in; exist; (before verbs) immediately involved in; right in the middle of doing
 
Duke of [[w:Pei Commandery; Liu Bang
trad. (項莊舞劍,意在沛公) 沛公
simp. (项庄舞剑,意在沛公) 沛公

Etymology

[edit]

From the Records of the Grand Historian. In 206 BC, late Qin dynasty warlord Xiang Yu invited his rival Liu Bang to a feast at Hongmen (鴻門宴鸿门宴 (hóngményàn)). During this feast, Xiang Yu's cousin, Xiang Zhuang, tried to assassinate Liu Bang (also known as the Duke of Pei) by pretending to offer to perform a sword dance.

Pronunciation

[edit]

Idiom

[edit]

項莊舞劍,意在沛公

  1. to have other disguised intentions