剑拔弩张 (jiàn bá nǔ zhāng) — to be at daggers drawn; to be in a tense, confrontational state
Definition
A chengyu for an extremely tense, confrontational standoff between two sides (talks, armies, etc.) — stronger than 紧张 ('tense'), which only describes the atmosphere.
idiom
to be at daggers drawnto be in a tenseconfrontational state
Examples
- 剑拔弩张，。Tán pàn shuāng fāng jiàn bá nǔ zhāng, qì fen fēi cháng jǐn zhāng.The two sides of the negotiation were at daggers drawn; the atmosphere was extremely tense.
- 剑拔弩张，。Liǎng guó jūn duì zài biān jìng jiàn bá nǔ zhāng, zhàn zhēng yí chù jí fā.The armies of the two countries were at daggers drawn at the border; war was imminent.
- ，剑拔弩张，。Huì yì yì kāi shǐ, shuāng fāng jiù jiàn bá nǔ zhāng, hù xiāng zhǐ zé.As soon as the meeting started, both sides were at daggers drawn, accusing each other.
Appears in
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