📖 Meaning
Refers to handling matters in an overly extreme or harsh manner. It describes situations where someone's actions are too drastic rather than measured and moderate, often provoking unintended negative consequences.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom appears in Wen Gongzhi's writings on the Xinhai Revolution, specifically regarding the New Army movement. It describes how Rui Cheng, the Qing Dynasty Governor of Hubei (鄂督), handled the revolutionary situation with excessive harshness, arresting and executing members of the revolutionary party (民党) on a daily basis. His extreme repression backfired, ultimately helping to trigger the Wuchang Uprising of 1911 that toppled the Qing dynasty.
💡 Example Usage
处理矛盾若操之过激，反而会激化冲突。
If one handles conflicts too drastically, it may instead escalate the situation.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 操之过激
- Pinyin: cāo zhī guò jī
- Literal Translation: handle, it, too, extreme
- Category: Action
- Characters: 4