后发制人 (hòu fā) — to gain mastery by counterattacking after the opponent has struck first; to win by striking second
Definition
A four-character idiom (chéngyǔ) meaning to win by waiting for the opponent to act first, then striking back. The literal idea: 'those who act later gain the advantage.'
idiom
to gain mastery by counterattacking after the opponent has struck firstto win by striking second
Examples
- ，后发制人，，。Zài zhè chǎng biàn lùn zhōng, tā cǎi yòng le hòu fā de cè lüè, xiān ràng duì fāng fā yán, rán hòu cái tí chū fǎn bó.In this debate, he adopted the strategy of counterattacking: he let the opponent speak first, then refuted their points.
- ，后发制人，。Miàn duì qiáng dí, zuì hǎo de fāng fǎ jiù shì hòu fā, děng duì fāng lòu chū pò zhàn zài chū jī.When facing a strong enemy, the best approach is to counterattack: wait for the opponent to show a weakness before striking.
- ，后发制人，。Tǐ yù bǐ sài zhōng, hòu fā shì yì zhǒng cháng jiàn de zhàn shù, yóu qí zài fáng shǒu fǎn jī de bǐ sài zhōng.In sports competitions, counterattacking is a common tactic, especially in defensive counterattack matches.
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