







窃钩者诛,窃国者侯 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Minor offenders are punished severely”. While major transgressors often escape justice or are even rewarded, highlighting the hypocrisy and injustice of systems. Literally, “He who steals a belt buckle pays with his life, he who steals a state gets to be a feudal lord”.

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Open the tool →窃钩者诛,窃国者侯 (qiè gōu zhě zhū , qiè guó zhě hóu) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Minor offenders are punished severely”.
窃钩者诛,窃国者侯 is pronounced qiè gōu zhě zhū , qiè guó zhě hóu in Mandarin Chinese.
Literally, 窃钩者诛,窃国者侯 means “He who steals a belt buckle pays with his life, he who steals a state gets to be a feudal lord”. It is used to mean “Minor offenders are punished severely”.
偷钩的要处死,篡夺政权的人反倒成为诸侯。旧时用以讽刺法律的虚伪和不合理。