黑吃黑

hēichīhēi

phrase

Meanings

1 criminals preying on other criminals
2 thieves robbing thieves
3 (of villains) to do the dirty on each other

Characters

black; underworld

to eat; prey on

black; underworld

Examples

这帮匪徒搞黑吃黑，把另一伙的钱抢了。

Zhè bāng fěitú gǎo hēichīhēi, bǎ lìng yī huǒ de qián qiǎng le.

This gang pulled a black-on-black, robbing another gang's money.

电影讲的是一个黑吃黑的故事。

Diànyǐng jiǎng de shì yī gè hēichīhēi de gùshi.

The film tells a story of crooks ripping off other crooks.

Tips

usage

黑 here means 'underworld / illegal' (as in 黑社会). The structure is X吃X — 'X eats X' — same pattern as 大鱼吃小鱼 (big fish eats little fish). Vivid, journalistic; common in crime headlines.

Stroke Order

黑 hēi

吃 chī