切 中 要 害

qiè zhòng yào hàidictionary entry

to hit the target and do real damage (idiom) / fig. to hit where it hurts / fig. to hit home / an argument that hits the nail on the head

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-44c740d92b1e1773. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

切中要害 切中要害 [qie4 zhong4 yao4 hai4] /to hit the target and do real damage (idiom)/fig. to hit where it hurts/fig. to hit home/an argument that hits the nail on the head/

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.

切
qiē
to cut / to slice / to carve / (math.) tangential
qiè
definitely / absolutely (not) / (scoffing or dismissive interjection) Yeah, right. / Tut! / to grind / (bound form) close to / (bound form) eager / to correspond to / (used to indicate that the fanqie 反切[fǎn qiè] system should be applied to the previous two characters)
中
zhōng
within / among / in / middle / center / while (doing sth) / during / (dialect) OK / all right
zhòng
to hit (a target) / to be struck by (a bullet, illness etc) / to win (a prize or lottery)
Zhōng
(bound form) China / Chinese / surname Zhong
要
yāo
(bound form) to demand / to coerce
yào
to want / to need / to ask for / will / shall / about to / need to / should / if (same as 要是[yào shi]) / (bound form) important
害
hài
to do harm to / to cause trouble to / harm / evil / calamity

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.