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先下手为强

xiān xià shǒu wéi qiáng

5-character word Traditional 先下手為強

What 先下手为强 means

1. idiomstrike first to gain the upper hand

The characters in 先下手为强

• 先xiānbeforehand; first; earlier; at first; originally; for the time being; for now
• 下xiàdown; downwards; below
• 手shǒuhand; (formal) to hold; person engaged in certain types of work
• 为wéias (in the capacity of); to take sth as; to act as
• 强qiángstrong; powerful; better

Example sentences

• 先下手为强，后下手遭殃。
  Xiānxiàshǒuwéiqiáng, hòu xiàshǒu zāoyāng.
  Get them before they get us.
• 俗话说：人不犯我，我不犯人；可俗话又说：先下手为强，后下手遭殃!
  As the saying goes: As long as you don't offend me, I won't offend you. But there's another saying: To strike first means victory, to strike second means tragedy.