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狐假虎威 — borrowed authority: chengyu story and meaning

狐假虎威 — To strut on power that is not your own — a title, a patron, a uniform. Used to cut a bully down to size: the fear comes from the tiger behind, not the fox in front.

Literal meaning

the fox borrows the tiger's terror

Source

Zhanguo Ce (Strategies of the Warring States), Chu chapter

When to use it

Said of borrowed authority, e.g. a junior aide throwing a famous boss's name around to win arguments.

The story

The king of Chu wondered whether his generals in the north truly frightened the neighbouring states, or whether it was Chu's own might behind them. A minister answered with a fable: the tiger once caught the fox and was about to eat it, when the fox claimed that Heaven had made him king of beasts and that eating him would offend Heaven — if the tiger doubted it, let the fox walk ahead through the forest and watch the animals flee. The tiger agreed, and every beast did flee — at the tiger padding behind, not the fox trotting in front. The minister bowed: our generals walk ahead; it is great Chu walking behind them.

Example

Characters

• 狐
• 假
• 虎
• 威

More chengyu stories

• 畫蛇添足 (waak6 se4 tim1 zuk1) — To spoil something good by adding what it does not need. Used when extra touches make a finished job worse, not better.
• 守株待兔 (sau2 zyu1 doi6 tou3) — To hope lightning strikes twice instead of working for what you want. Used for people who copy a one-off lucky break instead of adapting.
• 亡羊補牢 (mong4 joeng4 bou2 lou4) — Losses already taken are a reason to fix the cause, not to give up. Used to encourage action after a failure: repair the hole, then carry on.
• 掩耳盜鈴 (jim2 ji5 dou6 ling4) — To pretend a problem does not exist by blocking out the evidence, in a way that fools nobody but yourself. Used for self-deception that is obvious to everyone else.

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