DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

坐山觀虎鬥

简坐山观虎斗 · 繁坐山觀虎鬥

Mandarin · pinyin zuò shān guān hǔ dòu

lit. sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight (idiom)
fig. watch in safety whilst others fight then reap the rewards when both sides are exhausted

Characters in this entry

坐: zuò · sit; seat; ride, travel by
山: shān · mountain, hill, peak
觀: Look up this written character
虎: hǔ · tiger; brave, fierce; surname
鬥: Look up this written character
观: guān · see, observe, view; appearance
斗: dòu · dǒu · a dipper; unit of volume (ten 升 or litres); Kangxi radical 68; 8th lunar mansion, determinative star φ Sagittarii

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

4–1–1–3–4 · zuo4 shan1 guan1 hu3 dou4

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

5character links

Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

co5 saan1 gun1 fu2 dau3

Cantonese word readings for 坐山觀虎鬥. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

co5 saan1 gun1 fu2 dau3

Pleco · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Word reading; meanings not aligned.

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

(figuratively) to watch in safety while others fight, then reaping the spoils when both sides suffer.