关门捉贼

Pronunciation: guān mén zhuō zéi Literal meaning: Shut the door catch thief

Origin & Usage

The idiom 关门捉贼 (guān mén zhuō zéi) is derived from the ancient Chinese military strategy found in the 'Thirty-Six Stratagems' (三十六计), specifically the 27th stratagem. It involves the tactic of 'shutting the door to catch the thief,' which means to trap and eliminate an enemy by cutting off their escape routes. Historically, this strategy has been employed in various military contexts, such as the famous Battle of Changping during the Warring States period, where the Qin general Bai Qi used it to encircle and defeat the Zhao army. The characters 关 (guān) mean 'close' or 'shut,' 门 (mén) means 'door,' 捉 (zhuō) means 'catch,' and 贼 (zéi) means 'thief.' In modern usage, this idiom is applied to situations where one strategically limits options to ensure the capture or defeat of an opponent.

Examples

English: "By limiting options, they effectively trapped their competitor in a corner."

Chinese: 通过限制选择，他们有效地将竞争对手逼入了绝境。