- lit. first execute the criminal, then report it to the emperor (idiom)
- fig. to take some drastic action without the prior approval of higher authorities
Characters
- 先 (先): beforehand; first; earlier; at first; originally; for the time being; for now; (prefix) my late (in referring to deceased relatives older than oneself)
- 斩 (斬): to behead (as form of capital punishment); to chop
- 后 (后): surname Hou
- 奏 (奏): to play music; to achieve; to present a memorial to the emperor (old)
Resources
- Wiktionary: 先斩后奏
- MDBG: 先斩后奏
- Examples with 先斩后奏 on Tatoeba
Examples
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