以夷制夷

yǐ yí zhì yí

Dictionary entry

to use foreigners to subdue foreigners (idiom); let the barbarians fight it out among themselves (traditional policy of successive dynasties)

What does 以夷制夷 mean?

以夷制夷 (yǐ yí zhì yí) has the following dictionary meaning.

1to use foreigners to subdue foreigners (idiom); let the barbarians fight it out among themselves (traditional policy of successive dynasties)

2Use Western science and technology to counter imperialist encroachment. (late Qing modernizing slogan)

Character breakdown

Open each character to see its own meanings and vocabulary links.

以yǐold variant of 以[yi3]夷yínon-Han people, esp. to the East of China · barbarians 制zhìsystem · to control

Reviewed examples

No reviewed example dialogues yet. This page only shows verified dictionary data until a context lesson is published.

How to pronounce 以夷制夷

以夷制夷

yǐ yí zhì yí

Tap to hear Mandarin.

Base dictionary data: CC-CEDICT · CC BY-SA 4.0.