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勾心斗角

gōu xīn dòu jiǎo

4-character word Traditional 勾心鬥角

What 勾心斗角 means

1. to fight and scheme against each other (idiom)
2. (in palace construction) elaborate and refined

The characters in 勾心斗角

• 勾gōuto attract; to arouse; to tick
• 心xīnheart; mind; intention
• 斗dòuto fight; to struggle; to condemn
• 角jiǎoangle; corner; horn

Sounds the same

Read gōu xīn dòu jiǎo, tone for tone, but written differently.

• 钩心斗角variant of 勾心斗角