大义灭亲 (dà yì miè qīn) — to place righteousness above family loyalty; to sacrifice family ties for the sake of justice
Definition
A formal chengyu: 'to place justice above family ties' — usually praising someone who punishes a relative for a serious crime. Literary register; rarely used in everyday speech.
idiom
to place righteousness above family loyaltyto sacrifice family ties for the sake of justice
Examples
- 大义灭亲，。Fǎ guān dà yì miè qīn, bú gù zì jǐ de ér zi fàn le fǎ yě yào yī fǎ chǔ lǐ.The judge placed righteousness above his family, insisting on handling his own son according to the law even though he had broken it.
- 大义灭亲，。Zhè ge gù shi jiǎng de shì yí gè mǔ qīn dà yì miè qīn, jǔ bào le fàn dú de zhàng fu.This story is about a mother who denounced her drug-dealing husband for the sake of justice.
- ，大义灭亲，。Zài nà zhǒng qíng kuàng xià, tā xuǎn zé dà yì miè qīn, shì yīn wèi tā jué de yuán zé bǐ qīn qíng gèng zhòng yào.In that situation, he chose to uphold righteousness over family ties because he believed principles are more important than blood relations.
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