DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

豺狼當道

简豺狼当道 · 繁豺狼當道

Mandarin · pinyin chái láng dāng dào

(idiom) wicked people hold power; a vicious tyranny rules the land

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

豺: chái · wolf; cruel, wicked, mean
狼: láng · wolf
當: dāng · bear, accept, undertake; just
道: dào · path, road, street; method, way
当: dāng · bear, accept, undertake; just

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

2–2–1–4 · chai2 lang2 dang1 dao4

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

5character 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.

豺狼當道 · find source passages ↗ · 豺狼当道 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

caai4 long4 dong1 dou6

Cantonese word readings for 豺狼當道. 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) dholes and wolves hold the road; wicked people in power; a tyrant rules the land

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

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