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窮鼠猫を噛む. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
窮鼠猫を噛む, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
窮鼠猫を噛む in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
窮鼠猫を噛む you have here. The definition of the word
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窮鼠猫を噛む, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Japanese
| Alternative spelling
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| 窮鼠猫を嚙む (kyūjitai)
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Etymology
Calque of Literary Chinese 窮鼠嚙狸 (qióngshǔ nièlí, literally “a cornered rat will bite a cat”), from the Discourses on Salt and Iron (鹽鐵論·詔聖 / 盐铁论·诏圣). Note that the character 狸 (lí) is replaced by 猫 in Japanese.
Proverb
窮鼠猫を噛む • (kyūso neko o kamu)
- a cornered rat will bite a cat, weak people will attack when cornered