苛政猛于虎

苛政猛於虎
kēzhèng měng yú hǔ
quotation

Meanings

  1. 1 harsh government is fiercer than a tiger
  2. 2 tyranny is worse than wild beasts

Examples

HSK 6
Dú le 《 Bǔshézhě shuō 》, wǒ cái míngbai shénme jiào kēzhèng měng yú hǔ.
After reading The Snake Catcher's Tale, I finally understood what 'harsh government is fiercer than a tiger' means.
HSK 7-9
Shǐshū shàng shuō, nàshí fùshuì jí zhòng, zhēnshì kēzhèng měng yú hǔ.
The history books say taxes were crushing in those days: harsh government truly was fiercer than a tiger.

Tips

history
In the 礼记, 孔子 passes 泰山 and finds a woman weeping: tigers have killed her father-in-law, her husband and her son. Asked why she stays, she says there is no harsh government here, and Confucius tells his disciples that harsh government is fiercer than a tiger. 柳宗元's 捕蛇者说 retells the lesson.

Stroke Order

苛 kē
政 zhèng
猛 měng
于 yú
虎 hǔ