捋虎须

捋虎鬚

luōhǔxū

idiom

Meanings

1 to stroke a tiger's whiskers
2 to provoke someone powerful
3 to take a dangerous risk

Characters

stroke, smooth (with hand)

whiskers, beard

Examples

敢跟他顶嘴，简直是捋虎须。

Gǎn gēn tā dǐngzuǐ, jiǎnzhí shì luō hǔxū.

Talking back to him is basically stroking a tiger's whiskers.

这笔投资风险极大，无异于捋虎须。

Zhè bǐ tóuzī fēngxiǎn jí dà, wúyì yú luō hǔxū.

The investment is enormously risky — no different from pulling the tiger's whiskers.

别捋虎须，老板正在火头上。

Bié luō hǔxū, lǎobǎn zhèng zài huǒtóu shàng.

Don't poke the tiger — the boss is already fuming.

Tips

history

From 《吴录》 (via Pei Songzhi's 三国志 commentary): general Zhu Huan, dying, asked to stroke Sun Quan's beard as a last wish, saying 'today I may truly say I have stroked the tiger's whiskers.' Sun Quan laughed. The phrase has since meant courting danger from the powerful.

Stroke Order

捋 lǚ

虎 hǔ

须 xū