约法三章 / 約法三章

yuē​fǎ​sān​zhāng

to agree on basic rules

Originally referring to the three simple laws established by the first Han emperor to replace harsh Qin laws; now used to mean setting a few simple rules or a preliminary agreement to be followed by all parties

约 (literal) → 约/約 · yuē · to restrict 法 (literal) → 法 · fǎ · law 三 (literal) → 三 · sān · three 章 (literal) → 章 · zhāng · regulations

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

created sense May 20, 2026, 07:57 PM