以邻为壑 — “Take neighbors as a drainage pit”
以邻为壑 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to treat one's neighbors as a drainage ditch, diverting one's own problems or burdens onto them; to selfishly transfer difficulties or harms to others for one's own benefit”. Literally, “take neighbors as a drainage pit”.
以邻为壑 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 以yǐ
- 邻lín
- 为wéi
- 壑hè
以邻为壑 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 以邻为壑
Origin and Story of 以邻为壑
During the Warring States period, Bai Gui, the prime minister of the State of Wei, devoted himself to water conservancy projects and agricultural development. In managing floods, he built dikes to prevent floodwaters from entering his own state. He proudly told Mencius that his methods of flood control surpassed those of Yu the Great.
Mencius replied that Yu the Great managed floods by directing them to the sea, making the sea a natural receptacle, whereas Bai Gui was treating his neighbors as a drainage ditch, transferring the disaster to neighboring states.
Idioms Related to 以邻为壑
Synonyms of 以邻为壑
Antonyms of 以邻为壑
More idioms starting with 以
- yǐ以yī一jǐng儆bǎi百punish one to warn many
- yǐ以yī一fèng奉bǎi百one producer supports a hundred consumers
- yǐ以yī一dāng当shí十fight with the strength of ten men
- yǐ以yī一dāng当bǎi百one person effective as a hundred
- yǐ以yī一chí持wàn万Grasp key to control the whole
- yǐ以yī一zhī知wàn万infer many from one
- yǐ以yī一jǐng警bǎi百punish one to warn many
- yǐ以yī一yù驭wàn万Control many by grasping the fundamental
- yǐ以bù不biàn变yìng应wàn万biàn变respond to change with no change
- yǐ以fǒu不jì济kě可help succeed by negating incorrect ideas
- yǐ以fēng丰bǔ补qiàn歉save in times of plenty for scarcity
- yǐ以wéi为kǒu口shí实provide material for criticism
Questions about 以邻为壑
- What does 以邻为壑 mean?
- 以邻为壑 (yǐ lín wéi hè) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to treat one's neighbors as a drainage ditch, diverting one's own problems or burdens onto them; to selfishly transfer difficulties or harms to others for one's own benefit”.
- How do you pronounce 以邻为壑?
- 以邻为壑 is pronounced yǐ lín wéi hè in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 以邻为壑 literally mean?
- Literally, 以邻为壑 means “take neighbors as a drainage pit”. It is used to mean “to treat one's neighbors as a drainage ditch, diverting one's own problems or burdens onto them; to selfishly transfer difficulties or harms to others for one's own benefit”.
- Where does 以邻为壑 come from?
- 以邻为壑 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 以邻为壑?
- 拿邻国当做大水坑，把本国的洪水排泄到那里去。比喻只图自己一方的利益，把困难或祸害转嫁给别人。