挟天子以令诸侯 — “Hold the Son of Heaven to command the feudal lords”
挟天子以令诸侯 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to control a superior or someone in a position of authority and issue orders in their name; metaphorically, to use a higher-up's prestige or official capacity to command others for one's own benefit or agenda”. Literally, “Hold the Son of Heaven to command the feudal lords”.
挟天子以令诸侯 Pronunciation and Pinyin
挟天子以令诸侯 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 挟天子以令诸侯
Origin and Story of 挟天子以令诸侯
During the late Eastern Han Dynasty, the imperial court was in decline. Dong Zhuo deposed Emperor Shao (Liu Bian) and enthroned Emperor Xian (Liu Xie).
Later, Cao Cao welcomed Emperor Xian to Xuchang and began issuing orders to the feudal lords in the emperor's name.
To counter Cao Cao's strategy of 'holding the emperor to command the feudal lords,' Liu Bei made three visits to invite Zhuge Liang. Liu Bei fully trusted Zhuge Liang's advice and united with Eastern Wu to resist Cao Cao.
Idioms Related to 挟天子以令诸侯
Synonyms of 挟天子以令诸侯
More idioms starting with 挟
- jiā挟zhǔ主xíng行lìng令manipulate a superior to issue orders
- xié挟rén人zhuō捉jiāng将subdue opponents and capture leaders
- xié挟bīng冰qiú求wēn温Actions opposite to goal, ensuring failure
- xié挟shì势nòng弄quán权abuse power by relying on influence
- xié挟tiān天zǐ子lìng令zhū诸hóu侯control emperor, command lords
- xié挟tiān天zǐ子yǐ以zhēng征sì四fāng方control the emperor to command the realm
- xié挟tiān天zǐ子ér而lìng令zhū诸hóu侯manipulate power for one's own agenda
- xié挟shān山chāo超hǎi海attempt the utterly impossible
- xié挟péng朋shù树dǎng党Form cliques with companions
- xié挟quán权yǐ倚shì势abuse power and influence
- xié挟tài泰shān山yǐ以chāo超běi北hǎi海an utterly impossible feat
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Open the tool →Questions about 挟天子以令诸侯
What does 挟天子以令诸侯 mean?
挟天子以令诸侯 (xié tiān zǐ yǐ lìng zhū hóu) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to control a superior or someone in a position of authority and issue orders in their name; metaphorically, to use a higher-up's prestige or official capacity to command others for one's own benefit or agenda”.
How do you pronounce 挟天子以令诸侯?
挟天子以令诸侯 is pronounced xié tiān zǐ yǐ lìng zhū hóu in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 挟天子以令诸侯 literally mean?
Literally, 挟天子以令诸侯 means “Hold the Son of Heaven to command the feudal lords”. It is used to mean “to control a superior or someone in a position of authority and issue orders in their name; metaphorically, to use a higher-up's prestige or official capacity to command others for one's own benefit or agenda”.
Where does 挟天子以令诸侯 come from?
挟天子以令诸侯 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 挟天子以令诸侯?
挟制着皇帝，用皇帝的名义发号施令。现比喻用领导的名义按自己的意思去指挥别人。