如临大敌 — “As if facing a formidable enemy”
如临大敌 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be overly cautious or nervous, treating a not-so-serious situation as if one were facing a powerful enemy; to be on high alert”. Literally, “as if facing a formidable enemy”.
如临大敌 Pronunciation and Pinyin
如临大敌 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 如临大敌
Origin and Story of 如临大敌
During the late Tang Dynasty, Huang Chao led a peasant uprising, capturing the capital Chang'an. Emperor Xizong fled in panic and appointed Zheng Tian, a scholar-official, as the military governor of Fengxiang, instructing him to defend the region.
Upon arriving at Fengxiang, Zheng Tian built chariots, expanded his army, reinforced the city walls, and even distributed his family wealth among the soldiers.
His army remained on high alert day and night, as if facing a formidable enemy, and eventually defeated the 50,000-strong army led by Shang Rang.
Idioms Related to 如临大敌
Synonyms of 如临大敌
Antonyms of 如临大敌
More idioms starting with 如
- rú如bù不shèng胜yī衣extremely frail and thin
- rú如qiū丘ér而zhǐ止give up easily at first difficulty
- rú如sàng丧kǎo考bǐ妣as if one's parents had just died
- rú如lín临shēn深gǔ谷extremely cautious as if on a cliff edge
- rú如zhī之nài奈hé何What can be done about it
- rú如rén人yǐn饮shuǐ水，，lěng冷nuǎn暖zì自zhī知only personal experience reveals true feelings
- rú如xiōng兄rú如dì弟like brothers
- rú如rù入bǎo宝shān山kōng空shǒu手huí回miss great opportunities
- rú如rù入wú无rén人zhī之dì地to move with great ease and boldness
- rú如rù入wú无rén人zhī之jìng境to advance effortlessly without resistance
- rú如rù入zhī芝lán兰zhī之shì室，，jiǔ久ér而bù不wén闻qí其xiāng香Accustomed to good, no longer notice
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Open the tool →Questions about 如临大敌
What does 如临大敌 mean?
如临大敌 (rú lín dà dí) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be overly cautious or nervous, treating a not-so-serious situation as if one were facing a powerful enemy; to be on high alert”.
How do you pronounce 如临大敌?
如临大敌 is pronounced rú lín dà dí in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 如临大敌 literally mean?
Literally, 如临大敌 means “as if facing a formidable enemy”. It is used to mean “to be overly cautious or nervous, treating a not-so-serious situation as if one were facing a powerful enemy; to be on high alert”.
Where does 如临大敌 come from?
如临大敌 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 如临大敌?
临：面临。好象面对着强大的敌人。形容把本来不是很紧迫的形势看得十分严重。