乘人之危 — “Take advantage of someone's vulnerability/crisis”
乘人之危 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to take advantage of someone's precarious or difficult situation to harm, exploit, or threaten them”. Literally, “Take advantage of someone's vulnerability/crisis”.
乘人之危 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 乘chéng
- 人rén
- 之zhī
- 危wēi
乘人之危 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 乘人之危
Origin and Story of 乘人之危
During the Eastern Han Dynasty, Gai Xun, known for his integrity and talent, was appointed as the chief aide (长史) to a prefect. The prefecture where Gai Xun served was under the jurisdiction of Liang Hu, the Inspector of Liangzhou, who was also Gai Xun's friend.
At that time, the Prefect of Wuwei, who was under Liang Hu's jurisdiction, was tyrannical and committed numerous evil deeds. The common people hated him but dared not speak out. However, Su Zhenghe, one of Liang Hu's subordinates, feared no powerful figures and bravely investigated the Wuwei Prefect's crimes according to law.
Unexpectedly, Liang Hu became anxious, fearing that the investigation of the Wuwei Prefect's crimes might involve high-ranking officials and implicate himself. He even considered killing Su Zhenghe to silence him but was unsure if it was appropriate. So, he planned to consult his friend Gai Xun on what to do.
Coincidentally, Gai Xun and Su Zhenghe were adversaries. Someone leaked to Gai Xun that the Inspector would consult him about Su Zhenghe's fate and suggested that he seize this opportunity to persuade the Inspector to kill Su Zhenghe, thereby taking personal revenge. Gai Xun flatly refused, saying, "To kill a good official for personal reasons is disloyal; to harm someone when they are in danger is inhumane."
Later, Liang Hu indeed came to discuss Su Zhenghe's matter with him. Gai Xun advised Liang Hu with an analogy: "When you raise an eagle, you want it to be fierce so it can catch prey for you. Now that it is fierce, you want to kill it. If so, what was the point of raising it?"
Idioms Related to 乘人之危
Antonyms of 乘人之危
More idioms starting with 乘
- chéng乘yún云xíng行ní泥vast disparity in status
- chéng乘rén人bù不bèi备take advantage of someone unprepared
- chéng乘rén人zhī之è厄take advantage of someone's misfortune
- chéng乘wěi伪xíng行zhà诈practice deception and fraud
- chéng乘xìng兴ér而lái来come on a whim
- chéng乘xìng兴ér而lái来，，bài败xìng兴ér而guī归come with joy, leave with sorrow
- chéng乘xìng兴ér而lái来，，bài败xìng兴ér而fǎn返come with enthusiasm, return disappointed
- chéng乘qí其bù不bèi备take advantage of unpreparedness
- chéng乘qí其bù不yì意catch someone off guard
- chéng乘lì利xí席shèng胜capitalize on a winning situation
- chéng乘shì势shǐ使qì气leverage power to show temper
- chéng乘jiān坚cè策féi肥live extravagantly with sturdy carriages and fat horses
Questions about 乘人之危
- What does 乘人之危 mean?
- 乘人之危 (chéng rén zhī wēi) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to take advantage of someone's precarious or difficult situation to harm, exploit, or threaten them”.
- How do you pronounce 乘人之危?
- 乘人之危 is pronounced chéng rén zhī wēi in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 乘人之危 literally mean?
- Literally, 乘人之危 means “Take advantage of someone's vulnerability/crisis”. It is used to mean “to take advantage of someone's precarious or difficult situation to harm, exploit, or threaten them”.
- Where does 乘人之危 come from?
- 乘人之危 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 乘人之危?
- 乘人家危难的时候去威胁损害。