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Chinese/Dictionary entry

成也萧何，败也萧何

chéng yě Xiāo Hé , bài yě Xiāo Hédictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
lit. raised up by Xiao He, cast down by Xiao He (idiom), alluding to Han Xin 韓信|韩信[Hán Xìn] being made Grand General 大將軍|大将军[dà jiāng jūn] / fig. a situation where one's success and failure are both due to the same factor
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-6b81250b3bf6ed19. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

成也蕭何，敗也蕭何 成也萧何，败也萧何 [cheng2 ye3 Xiao1 He2 , bai4 ye3 Xiao1 He2] /lit. raised up by Xiao He, cast down by Xiao He (idiom), alluding to Han Xin 韓信|韩信[Han2 Xin4] being made Grand General 大將軍|大将军[da4 jiang1 jun1]/fig. a situation where one's success and failure are both due to the same factor/

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: 成也蕭何，敗也蕭何

  • 成
    chéng

    to succeed / to finish / to complete / to accomplish / to become / to turn into / to be all right / OK! / one tenth

    Chéng

    surname Cheng / short name for Chengdu 成都[Chéng dū]

  • 也
    yě

    also / too / as well / (not ...) either / (used after a verbal or nominal expression X to indicate that X is an extreme or unexpected case) even (X) / (literary) particle having functions similar to 啊[a]

    Yě

    surname Ye

  • 萧
    xiāo

    (old) Chinese mugwort / (bound form) desolate / dreary

    Xiāo

    surname Xiao

  • 何
    hé

    what / how / why / which / carry

    Hé

    surname He

  • 败
    bài

    to defeat / to damage / to lose (to an opponent) / to fail / to wither

  • 也
    yě

    also / too / as well / (not ...) either / (used after a verbal or nominal expression X to indicate that X is an extreme or unexpected case) even (X) / (literary) particle having functions similar to 啊[a]

    Yě

    surname Ye

  • 萧
    xiāo

    (old) Chinese mugwort / (bound form) desolate / dreary

    Xiāo

    surname Xiao

  • 何
    hé

    what / how / why / which / carry

    Hé

    surname He

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.