法网恢恢，疏而不漏

法網恢恢，疏而不漏

fǎwǎnghuīhuī,shū'érbùlòu

idiom

Meanings

1 the net of justice is vast, and though loosely woven lets nothing slip through
2 no criminal escapes the law in the end
3 justice catches up eventually

Characters

vast (reduplicated: 恢恢)

Examples

他逃了二十年，最后还是被抓了——法网恢恢，疏而不漏。

Tā táole èrshí nián, zuìhòu háishì bèi zhuā le — fǎwǎng huīhuī, shū ér bù lòu.

He was on the run for twenty years and was finally caught — the law's net is wide, but nothing slips through.

正所谓法网恢恢，疏而不漏，犯罪分子终将受到惩罚。

Zhèng suǒwèi fǎwǎng huīhuī, shū ér bù lòu, fànzuì fènzǐ zhōng jiāng shòudào chéngfá.

As the saying goes, the net of justice is vast and lets nothing through; criminals will be punished in the end.

Tips

history

Adapted from 《老子·第七十三章》: 天网恢恢，疏而不失 ("Heaven's net is vast; loose, yet it loses nothing"). 法 (law) was substituted for 天 (heaven) in modern usage to apply the image to human justice rather than divine retribution.

usage

Standard rhetoric in Chinese crime news, court verdicts, and police PR. Often shortened to just 法网恢恢 in headlines.

Stroke Order

法 fǎ

网 wǎng

恢 huī

疏 shū

而 ér

不 bù

漏 lòu