狐假虎威

Meaning: To bully others using borrowed power.

Language: Chinese

Literally: The fox borrows the tiger's might

Category: Animals

Origin: A Warring States fable: a fox walks ahead of a tiger so other beasts flee, then claims their terror was fear of itself.

More idioms — Animals

• De kat uit de boom kijken — To wait cautiously before committing.
• De koe bij de horens vatten — To tackle a problem head-on.
• Κάνω την πάπια — To feign ignorance; to play dumb.
• Att göra en pudel — To make a public, grovelling apology.
• Robić kogoś w konia — To make a fool of or trick someone.
• Å svelge noen kameler — To make big concessions and accept what you dislike.

More Chinese idioms

• 入乡随俗 — When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
• 一箭双雕 — To achieve two things with a single act.
• 班门弄斧 — To display feeble skill before a true master.
• 名落孙山 — To fail an examination.
• 雪上加霜 — To make a bad situation even worse.
• 对牛弹琴 — Reasoning with someone who cannot understand.

← Back to Idioms

Loading the full interactive collection…