DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

以牙還牙

简以牙还牙 · 繁以牙還牙

Mandarin · pinyin yǐ yá huán yá

a tooth for a tooth (retaliation)

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

以: yǐ · by means of; thereby, therefore; consider as; in order to
牙: yá · tooth, molars, teeth; serrated
還: hái · still, yet, also, besides
还: hái · still, yet, also, besides

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

3–2–2–2 · yi3 ya2 huan2 ya2

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

4character links

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

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

Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

以牙還牙 · find source passages ↗ · 以牙还牙 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

ji5 ngaa4 waan4 ngaa4

Cantonese word readings for 以牙還牙. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

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

phrase

(idiomatic) to take an eye for an eye

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack