两败俱伤 — “Both sides suffer losses”
两败俱伤 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Both sides suffer losses”. Neither emerges victorious, resulting in a lose-lose situation. Literally, “Both defeated and both injured”.
两败俱伤 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 两liǎng
- 败bài
- 俱jù
- 伤shāng
两败俱伤 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 两败俱伤
Origin and Story of 两败俱伤
During the Warring States period, there was a clever and witty man named Chunyu. He learned that King Xuan of Qi was preparing to attack the State of Wei.
Chunyu went to see King Xuan and asked, "Your Majesty, have you heard the story of Han Zilü and Dongguo Qun?" "Han Zilü was the finest hunting dog under heaven, and Dongguo Qun was the most renowned cunning rabbit in the world. One day, Han Zilü was chasing Dongguo Qun. One desperately fled in front, the other desperately pursued from behind. What happened? They both ran until they were utterly exhausted, unable to move, and fell dead at the foot of the mountain."
"Just then, a farmer happened to pass by and effortlessly took both of them home to cook and eat."
King Xuan asked, "What does this have to do with my plan to attack Wei?"
Chunyu replied, "Your Majesty, if the State of Qi sends troops to attack Wei, it will certainly not be a victory achieved in a short time. In the end, both sides will become impoverished and depleted of resources, resulting in mutual damage. Not only will the common people suffer, but the nation's military strength will also be greatly harmed. If, by any chance, the States of Qin and Chu take this opportunity to attack us, wouldn't we be handing them the chance to conquer both Qi and Wei?"
King Xuan listened to Chunyu's words, found them very reasonable, and halted his plan to attack Wei. Later, this idiom '两败俱伤' (liǎng bài jù shāng) is used to describe a situation where two people of similar ability fight each other, and instead of one winning, both are injured or defeated.
Idioms Related to 两败俱伤
Synonyms of 两败俱伤
Antonyms of 两败俱伤
More idioms starting with 两
- liǎng两shì世wéi为rén人to feel reborn after surviving danger
- liǎng两liǎng两sān三sān三in small groups
- liǎng两xiāng厢qíng情yuàn愿both parties willing
- liǎng两yè叶yǎn掩mù目deluded by trivialities
- liǎng两guó国jiāo交bīng兵，，bù不zhǎn斩lái来shǐ使Do not harm messengers in war
- liǎng两guó国xiāng相zhàn战，，bù不zhǎn斩lái来shǐ使Do not harm envoys even in war
- liǎng两tóu头sān三xù绪conflicting thoughts and worries
- liǎng两tóu头sān三miàn面two-faced and inconsistent
- liǎng两tóu头hé和fān番stir up trouble between two parties
- liǎng两tóu头dān担xīn心worried about both ends
- liǎng两tóu头bái白miàn面Deceive both parties to gain favor
Questions about 两败俱伤
- What does 两败俱伤 mean?
- 两败俱伤 (liǎng bài jù shāng) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Both sides suffer losses”.
- How do you pronounce 两败俱伤?
- 两败俱伤 is pronounced liǎng bài jù shāng in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 两败俱伤 literally mean?
- Literally, 两败俱伤 means “Both defeated and both injured”. It is used to mean “Both sides suffer losses”.
- Where does 两败俱伤 come from?
- 两败俱伤 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 两败俱伤?
- 俱：都。斗争双方都受到损伤，谁也没得到好处。