敲竹杠

敲竹槓

qiāozhúgàng

idiom #50,845

Meanings

1 to tap the bamboo pole
2 to extort; to rip off; to overcharge
3 to exploit someone's weakness for money

Characters

Examples

这家餐厅专门敲外地游客的竹杠。

Zhèjiā cāntīng zhuānmén qiāo wàidì yóukè de zhú gàng.

This restaurant is famous for ripping off out-of-town tourists.

修车师傅看见是新手，就想敲竹杠。

Xiūchē shīfu kànjiàn shì xīnshǒu, jiù xiǎng qiāozhúgàng.

The mechanic spotted the newbie and immediately tried to overcharge.

别让他敲你的竹杠，市场价我清楚。

Bié ràng tā qiāo nǐ de zhú gàng, shìchǎngjià wǒ qīngchu.

Don't let him gouge you — I know the going rate.

Tips

history

A Qing-dynasty origin story: opium smugglers hid their goods in hollow bamboo poles on boats, and river officials would 'tap the bamboo' to demand a bribe — otherwise they'd 'inspect' and uncover the contraband. Tapping became slang for extorting under a pretext. 《官场现形记》第17回 already uses it casually.

usage

The object goes between 敲 and 竹杠: 敲他的竹杠 ('to rip him off'). Very colloquial.

Stroke Order

敲 qiāo

竹 zhú

杠 gàng