殺雞警猴 shā jī jǐng hóu

DEFINITIONS

  1. lit. killing the chicken to warn the monkey (idiom); to punish an individual as an example to others
  2. pour encourager les autres

CHARACTERS

殺 shā kill, slaughter, murder; hurt; to pare off, reduce, clip
雞 jī chickens; domestic fowl
警 jǐng guard, watch; alert, alarm
猴 hóu monkey, ape; monkey-like