彼竭我盈 — “Their resources exhausted, ours abundant”
彼竭我盈 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to strike when the enemy's strength or morale is exhausted and one's own is at its peak; to wait for the opportune moment when the opponent is depleted and you are strong”. Literally, “Their resources exhausted, ours abundant”.
彼竭我盈 Pronunciation and Pinyin
彼竭我盈 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 彼竭我盈
Origin and Story of 彼竭我盈
During the Spring and Autumn period, the state of Qi, relying on its strength, launched an attack on the state of Lu. Duke Zhuang of Lu led his army to confront the enemy.
When the two armies met, the Qi army beat their war drums, but the Lu army, led by Cao Gui, held back and did not beat their drums. By the third time the Qi army beat their drums, their morale had significantly dropped.
It was only then that the Lu army beat their drums for the first time. The Lu army waited until the precise moment of '彼竭我盈' (when the enemy's strength was exhausted and their own was abundant) to defeat the larger Qi army with fewer troops.
Idioms Related to 彼竭我盈
More idioms starting with 彼
- bǐ彼yī一shí时，，cǐ此yī一shí时Times have changed
- bǐ彼yì亦yī一shì是fēi非，，cǐ此yì亦yī一shì是fēi非Right and wrong are relative
- bǐ彼zhòng众wǒ我guǎ寡heavily outnumbered
- bǐ彼hé何rén人sī斯Who is that person?
- bǐ彼chàng倡cǐ此hé和one proposes, another echoes
- bǐ彼zāi哉bǐ彼zāi哉Who is that person, really?
- bǐ彼chàng唱cǐ此hé和one sings, the other echoes
- bǐ彼qì弃wǒ我qǔ取embrace what others reject
- bǐ彼cǐ此yī一yàng样exactly alike
- bǐ彼cǐ此bǐ彼cǐ此the same to you; likewise
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Open the tool →Questions about 彼竭我盈
What does 彼竭我盈 mean?
彼竭我盈 (bǐ jié wǒ yíng) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to strike when the enemy's strength or morale is exhausted and one's own is at its peak; to wait for the opportune moment when the opponent is depleted and you are strong”.
How do you pronounce 彼竭我盈?
彼竭我盈 is pronounced bǐ jié wǒ yíng in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 彼竭我盈 literally mean?
Literally, 彼竭我盈 means “Their resources exhausted, ours abundant”. It is used to mean “to strike when the enemy's strength or morale is exhausted and one's own is at its peak; to wait for the opportune moment when the opponent is depleted and you are strong”.
Where does 彼竭我盈 come from?
彼竭我盈 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 彼竭我盈?
彼：他，对方；竭：尽；盈：充满。他们的勇气已丧失，我们的士气正旺盛。