📖 Meaning
To commit evil or criminal acts and break the law. The phrase describes someone engaging in wrongdoing and violating the penal code, usually warranting official punishment. It is a formal, condemning expression used to characterize serious legal offenses.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from the 'Chu Shi Biao' (出师表), a memorial written by Zhuge Liang of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period (3rd century). In the text, he urges the young emperor to fairly reward and punish, writing: 'If there are those who commit crimes and break the law, or those who are loyal and good, they should be handed over to the officials to determine their punishment or reward.' The phrase thereby entered the literary canon as a standard term for lawbreaking, and was later popularized in vernacular fiction such as Ming-dynasty works.
💡 Example Usage
作奸犯科者，国法难容，终究难逃制裁。
Those who commit crimes and break the law are intolerable to the nation's legal system and will ultimately never escape punishment.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 作奸犯科
- Pinyin: zuò jiān fàn kē
- Literal Translation: to do wicked deeds, to violate legal statutes
- Category: Morality
- Characters: 4