假道伐虢 in English jia3 dao4 fa2 Guo2 Meaning

Meanings

• to obtain safe passage to conquer the State of Guo
• to borrow the resources of an ally to attack a common enemy (idiomatic expression)

Pinyin

jia3 dao4 fa2 Guo2

Literal

Literal explanation, with pronunciation and meaning of each character.

假jia3see 假掰[gei1 bai1] 道dao4road 伐fa2to cut down 虢guo2Guo, a kinship group whose members held dukedoms within the Zhou Dynasty realm, including Western Guo 西虢國|西虢国 and Eastern Guo 東虢國|东虢国