强龙不压地头蛇 qiáng lóng bù yā dì tóu shé

outsiders can't beat local powers

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency Unknown

Definitions

  1. 1. lit. strong dragon cannot repress a snake (idiom); fig. a local gangster who is above the law

Characters

Character Meaning
强 qiáng HSK 5
strong; powerful; better
龙 lóng HSK 5
dragon; imperial; surname Long
不 bù HSK 1
not; no; (negative prefix)
压 yā HSK 4
to press; pressure; to push down
地 dì HSK 3
ground; land; adverb marker -ly
头 tóu HSK 3
head; the top; end
蛇 shé HSK 5
snake; serpent; variant of 蛇shé