不 入 虎 穴，焉 得 虎 子

bù rù hǔ xué , yān dé hǔ zǐdictionary entry

How do you catch the tiger cub without entering the tiger's lair? (idiom) / Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

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-2cca2acb0c6d8da9. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

不入虎穴，焉得虎子 不入虎穴，焉得虎子 [bu4 ru4 hu3 xue2 , yan1 de2 hu3 zi3] /How do you catch the tiger cub without entering the tiger's lair? (idiom); Nothing ventured, nothing gained./

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.

不
bù
no / not so / (bound form) not / un-
入
rù
to enter / to go into / to join / to become a member of / (bound form) to conform to (as in 入時|入时[rù shí]) / abbr. for 入聲|入声[rù shēng] / (on product packaging, after {number n} + {classifier}) containing (n pieces) (from Japanese 入 "iri")
虎
hǔ
tiger / CL:隻|只[zhī]
穴
xué
cave / cavity / hole / acupuncture point / Taiwan pr. [xuè]
焉
yān
where / how
得
dé
to obtain / to get / to gain / to catch (a disease) / proper / suitable / proud / contented / to allow / to permit / ready / finished
dè
used in 得瑟[dè se]
de
structural particle: used after a verb (or adjective as main verb), linking it to following phrase indicating effect, degree, possibility etc
děi
to have to / must / ought to / to need to
虎
hǔ
tiger / CL:隻|只[zhī]
子
zǐ
son / child / seed / egg / small thing / 1st earthly branch: 11 p.m.–1 a.m., midnight, 11th solar month (7th December to 5th January), year of the rat / viscount, fourth of five orders of nobility 五等爵位[wǔ děng jué wèi] / ancient Chinese compass point: 0° (north) / subsidiary / subordinate / (prefix) sub-
zi
noun suffix, as in 椅子[yǐ zi] "chair"

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.