兔死狗烹
兔死狗烹 (tù sǐ gǒu pēng) literally means “hare dead, hound cooked” and expresses “discard allies once they are useless”. This idiom is used when describing situations involving success and perseverance.
Also searched as: tu si gou peng, tu si gou peng,兔死狗烹 meaning, 兔死狗烹 in english
Discard allies once they are useless
Pronunciation: tù sǐ gǒu pēng Literal meaning: Hare dead, hound cooked
Origin & Usage
Fan Li, having helped Goujian of Yue destroy Wu, left at once and wrote to his colleague Wen Zhong telling him to do the same: 飞鸟尽，良弓藏；狡兔死，走狗烹 — when the birds are gone the good bow is put away, when the cunning hares are dead the running hounds are cooked. Goujian, he warned, was a man to share hardship with but not ease. Wen Zhong stayed and was ordered to kill himself. Han Xin quoted the same lines at his own arrest centuries later. The other half, 鸟尽弓藏, is used interchangeably.
Examples
English: "The winning general was thanked and then destroyed"
Chinese: 大功告成之后，那位功臣反而被清算了
Related Chinese Idioms
Similar idioms about success & perseverance
挂羊头卖狗肉
guà yáng tóu mài gǒu ròu
Advertise one thing and deliver another
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春蚕到死
chūn cán dào sǐ
Give out until nothing is left
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死而后已
sǐ ér hòu yǐ
Continue until death; lifelong commitment
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守株待兔
shǒu zhū dài tù
Wait passively for luck
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狡兔三窟
jiǎo tù sān kū
Always have backup plans
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does 兔死狗烹 mean in English?
兔死狗烹 (tù sǐ gǒu pēng) literally translates to “Hare dead, hound cooked” and is used to express “Discard allies once they are useless”. This Chinese idiom belongs to the Success & Perseverance category.
When is 兔死狗烹 used?
Situation: The winning general was thanked and then destroyed
What is the pinyin for 兔死狗烹?
The pinyin pronunciation for 兔死狗烹 is “tù sǐ gǒu pēng”.