杯酒释兵权 in English bei1 jiu3 shi4 bing1 quan2 Meaning

Meanings

  • to dismiss military hierarchy using wine cups
  • cf Song founding Emperor Song Taizu 宋太祖 holds a banquet in 961 and persuades his senior army commanders to go home to their provinces

Simplified Characters

杯 酒 释 兵 权

Traditional Characters

杯 酒 釋 兵 權

Pinyin

bei1 jiu3 shi4 bing1 quan2

Literal

Literal explanation, with pronunciation and meaning of each character.

杯bei1cup 酒jiu3wine (esp. rice wine) 释shi4to explain 兵bing1soldiers 权quan2surname Quan