假道伐虢

jiǎdàofáGuó

idiom

Meanings

1 to obtain safe passage in order to attack
2 to use one ally's territory to crush another
3 the third of the Thirty-Six Stratagems' 'invasion' set

Characters

to borrow (literary)

to attack; to send a punitive expedition against

the State of Guo (Zhou-era kingdom)

Examples

他用假道伐虢的策略，先借盟友之力击败了对手。

Tā yòng jiǎ dào fá Guó de cèlüè, xiān jiè méngyǒu zhī lì jībài le duìshǒu.

He used the 'borrow a path to conquer Guo' stratagem, leveraging an ally's resources to crush his rival first.

商场上假道伐虢的手段并不少见。

Shāngchǎng shàng jiǎ dào fá Guó de shǒuduàn bìng bù shǎojiàn.

'Borrow-the-path' tactics are hardly rare in business.

Tips

history

From 《左传·僖公五年》 (722-468 BC): the state of Jin (晋) asked Yu (虞) for safe passage to attack Guo (虢). Once Guo fell, Jin's army turned around and conquered Yu on the way home. The cautionary partner idiom 唇亡齿寒 (chúnwángchǐhán, 'when the lips are gone, the teeth get cold') comes from the same episode.

culture

Listed as #24 in the 三十六计 (Sānshíliù Jì, Thirty-Six Stratagems). The lesson: when a strong neighbor asks to 'pass through,' assume they're coming for you next.

Stroke Order

假 jià

道 dào

伐 fá

虢 Guó