虎毒不食子 hǔ dú bù shí zǐ

a tiger, though cruel, will not devour its cubs (idiom)

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency Unknown

Definitions

  1. 1. a tiger, though cruel, will not devour its cubs (idiom)
  2. 2. even wild beasts look after their young

Characters

Character Meaning
虎 hǔ HSK 4
tiger
毒 dú HSK 5
poison; poisonous; to poison
不 bù HSK 1
not; no; (negative prefix)
食 shí HSK 5
to eat; food; animal feed
子 zǐ HSK 1
(noun suffix); son; child