zhí​niú'ěr

to be the leader

  • created sense approved 执牛耳/執牛耳 · zhí​niú'ěr · to be the leader — "Initial import from upstream dictionary"

    执牛耳 / 執牛耳

    zhí​niú'ěr

    to be the leader

    To be the acknowledged leader or authority in a specific field; to rule the roost. This term originally referred to the person who presided over an alliance ceremony in ancient China by holding the sacrificial bull's ears

    执, , 牛耳

    执 (literal) → 执/執 · zhí · to hold 牛耳 (literal) → 牛耳 · niú'ěr · leader

    Changed: simplified, traditional, gloss, definition, pinyin, variant pinyin, variants, separable parts, decomposition

    created sense