刀山剑树 — “A metaphor for an extremely dangerous or cruel situation”
刀山剑树 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “a metaphor for an extremely dangerous or cruel situation”. Often referring to a place of severe torment or punishment, akin to a hellish environment, causing immense suffering. Literally, “mountain of knives and forest of swords”.
刀山剑树 Pronunciation and Pinyin
刀山剑树 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 刀山剑树
Origin and Story of 刀山剑树
During the Five Dynasties period, Liu Chang, the incompetent ruler of Southern Han, entrusted state affairs to the eunuch Gong Chenghu.
Gong Chenghu was cunning and inherently cruel. He regarded all civil and military officials as mere laymen.
Once officials made mistakes, they were either forced to climb a mountain of knives and a forest of swords or driven into an arena to fight tigers and elephants.
This tyranny led to widespread public resentment, and soon after, the Southern Han was annihilated by Zhao Kuangyin.
Idioms Related to 刀山剑树
Synonyms of 刀山剑树
Antonyms of 刀山剑树
More idioms starting with 刀
- dāo刀xià下liú留rén人Stay the execution
- dāo刀zǔ俎yú余shēng生a narrow escape from danger
- dāo刀guāng光jiàn剑yǐng影scene of flashing swords and clashing blades
- dāo刀guāng光xuè血yǐng影scene of intense fighting and bloodshed
- dāo刀dāo刀jiàn见xiě血speak incisively and pointedly
- dāo刀tóu头jiàn剑shǒu首extremely perilous situation
- dāo刀tóu头yàn燕wěi尾vigorous, sharp, powerful brushstrokes
- dāo刀tóu头tiǎn舔mì蜜pursue small gains at great risk
- dāo刀zi子zuǐ嘴dòu豆fu腐xīn心sharp tongue, soft heart
- dāo刀shān山jiàn剑lín林perilous and extremely dangerous place
- dāo刀shān山xuè血hǎi海extreme peril and difficulty
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Open the tool →Questions about 刀山剑树
What does 刀山剑树 mean?
刀山剑树 (dāo shān jiàn shù) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “a metaphor for an extremely dangerous or cruel situation”.
How do you pronounce 刀山剑树?
刀山剑树 is pronounced dāo shān jiàn shù in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 刀山剑树 literally mean?
Literally, 刀山剑树 means “mountain of knives and forest of swords”. It is used to mean “a metaphor for an extremely dangerous or cruel situation”.
Where does 刀山剑树 come from?
刀山剑树 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 刀山剑树?
佛教所说的地狱之刑。形容极残酷的刑罚。