📖 Meaning
To be executed or killed together with others, side by side. It describes a group of people facing death simultaneously, typically through execution. The phrase is equivalent to the idiom 骈首就戮.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom is composed of classical Chinese elements: 骈首 means 'side by side' or 'with heads together,' and 就死 means 'to go to one's death.' It appears in historical texts describing situations where multiple condemned prisoners or defeated enemies are executed at the same time. The phrase conveys the grim imagery of victims lined up together to receive their sentence, reflecting the harsh realities of capital punishment in imperial China.
💡 Example Usage
这群叛军被俘之后，骈首就死，无一幸免。
After being captured, the rebels were all executed together, and none survived.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 骈首就死
- Pinyin: pián shǒu jiù sǐ
- Literal Translation: side by side, go to death
- Category: Action
- Characters: 4