杀一警百 — “To punish one individual severely as a warning to many”

杀一警百 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to punish one individual severely as a warning to many”. To make an example of someone to deter others from similar misconduct. Literally, “Kill one to warn a hundred”.

Frequency

杀一警百 Pronunciation and Pinyin

杀一警百 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
杀	shā	6	to kill
一	yī	1	one, a, single, whole
警	jǐng	19	warn, police, alert
百	bǎi	6	one hundred, numerous

Example Sentence with 杀一警百

为了杜绝此类事件再次发生，公司决定对违规的员工严惩，希望能够杀一警百。

To prevent similar incidents from happening again, the company decided to severely punish the employee who violated regulations, hoping to set an example and deter others.

Origin and Story of 杀一警百

During the Western Han Dynasty, Tian Yannian, the governor of Hedong, was inspecting Pingyang, Huo Guang's hometown. He discovered that Yin Wenggui, a market official, was a rare talent. Tian Yannian then submitted a petition to the emperor, recommending Yin Wenggui to be appointed as the governor of Donghai.

Donghai Prefecture was a chaotic place, dominated by powerful local families and rampant with bandits.

Upon taking office, Yin Wenggui decided to apply the principle of 'kill one to warn a hundred'. He publicly executed Xu Zhongsun, a notorious and powerful local strongman. As a result, no one dared to break the law, and Donghai became stable and peaceful.