悬崖勒马 (xuán yá lè mǎ) — to stop a dangerous or wrong action just before it leads to disaster; (literal) to rein in the horse at the cliff's edge

Definition

A chengyu meaning to pull back at the last second from a course of action that would lead to ruin. Often used as a warning or a plea to stop before disaster strikes.

idiom
to stop a dangerous or wrong action just before it leads to disaster(literal) to rein in the horse at the cliff's edge

Examples

  • ，悬崖勒马。
    Tā xiàn zài gǎi zhèng hái lái de jí, zhēn shì xuán yá lè mǎ.
    It's not too late for him to correct his mistake now — truly reining in at the cliff's edge.
  • 悬崖勒马，。
    Qǐ yè bì xū xuán yá lè mǎ, fǒu zé jiù huì pò chǎn.
    The company must stop before it's too late, or it will go bankrupt.
  • 悬崖勒马，。
    Wǒ quàn nǐ xuán yá lè mǎ, bié zài cān yù nà xiē wéi fǎ huó dòng le.
    I advise you to pull back before it's too late — stop participating in those illegal activities.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

悬崖steep cliff
悬xuánhanging崖yácliff
偏正Modifier + head
勒马rein in a horse
勒lèrein in马mǎhorse
动宾Verb + object

悬崖勒马 pairs 悬崖, a steep cliff, with 勒马, reining in a horse, to mean stopping just before disaster.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 懸; 悬 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
縣
縣xiàn懸xuán
Same sound today

The traditional form 懸 adds 心, “heart,” to the older form 縣, which gave the sound. The simplified 悬 is a later abbreviation.

Open 悬 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
山山shānmountain
Sound part声符shēngfú
厓
厓yá崖yá
Same sound today

崖 pairs 山 (mountain) with 厓 (cliff), and 厓 gives the sound yá.

Open 崖 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
革革gé
Sound part声符shēngfú
力
力lì勒lè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

勒 pairs 革 (leather), because bridles are made of leather, with 力, which gives the sound.

Open 勒 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 馬; 马 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 馬 shows a horse with its head facing left, a flowing mane, and two legs standing vertically.

Open 马 →

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