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虾兵蟹将

xiā bīng xiè jiàngdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
shrimp soldiers and crab generals (in mythology or popular fiction, the army of the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea) / useless troops (idiom)
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-f02647435879597b. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

蝦兵蟹將 虾兵蟹将 [xia1 bing1 xie4 jiang4] /shrimp soldiers and crab generals (in mythology or popular fiction, the army of the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea)/useless troops (idiom)/

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: 蝦兵蟹將

  • 虾
    há

    used in 蝦蟆|虾蟆[há ma]

    xiā

    shrimp / prawn

  • 兵
    bīng

    soldiers / a force / an army / weapons / arms / military / warlike / CL:個|个[gè]

  • 蟹
    xiè

    crab

  • 将
    jiāng

    will / shall / to use / to take / to checkmate / just a short while ago / (introduces object of main verb, used in the same way as 把[bǎ])

    jiàng

    (bound form) a general / (literary) to command / to lead / (Chinese chess) general (on the black side, equivalent to a king in Western chess)

    qiāng

    to desire / to invite / to request

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.