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为虎作伥

wèi hǔ zuò chāngdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
(idiom) to act as accomplice to a villain / to assist in wrongdoing
Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-0cba0a1a1dba9789. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

為虎作倀 为虎作伥 [wei4 hu3 zuo4 chang1] /(idiom) to act as accomplice to a villain; to assist in wrongdoing/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

Other forms in these source records: 為虎作倀

  • 为
    wéi

    as (in the capacity of) / to take sth as / to act as / to serve as / to behave as / to become / to be / to do / by (in the passive voice)

    wèi

    because of / for / to

  • 虎
    hǔ

    tiger / CL:隻|只[zhī]

  • 作
    zuō

    (bound form) worker / (bound form) workshop / (slang) troublesome / high-maintenance (person)

    zuò

    to do / to engage in / to write / to compose / to pretend / to feign / to regard as / to consider to be / to be / to act the part of / to feel (itchy, nauseous etc) / writings / works

  • 伥
    chāng

    (bound form) ghost of sb devoured by a tiger who helps the tiger devour others

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.