严惩不贷 Yán chéng bù dài Severe punishment, no leniency

Explanation

严厉惩罚，绝不宽恕。形容对违法犯罪行为的处理态度非常坚决。

Severe punishment, no leniency. Describes a very firm attitude towards illegal and criminal acts.

Origin Story

话说唐朝时期，有个贪官污吏名叫李肃，鱼肉乡里，横行霸道。百姓苦不堪言，纷纷向朝廷上书告状。皇帝得知此事后震怒，下令严惩不贷。御史大夫立即奉旨查办，将李肃及其同伙绳之以法，并没收其全部家产，充公入库。一时间，洛阳城内人心振奋，一片欢腾。从此以后，再无人敢在官场上为非作歹，唐朝的吏治也因此得到了显著的改善。

huà shuō táng cháo shí qī, yǒu gè tān guān wū lì míng jiào lǐ sù, yú ròu xiāng lǐ, héng xíng bà dào. bǎixìng kǔ bù kān yán, fēn fēn xiàng cháo tíng shàng shū gào zhuàng. huángdì zhīdào cǐ shì hòu zhèn nù, xià lìng yán chéng bù dài. yùshǐ dài fū lìjí fèng zhǐ chá bàn, jiāng lǐ sù jí qí tóng huǒ shéng zhī yǐ fǎ, bìng mòshōu qí quán bù jiā chǎn, chōng gōng rù kù. yī shí jiān, luò yáng chéng nèi rén xīn zhèn fèn, yī piàn huān téng. cóng cǐ yǐ hòu, zài wú rén gǎn zài guān chǎng shàng wèi fēi zuò dài, táng cháo de lì zhì yě yīn cǐ dédào le xiǎnzhù de gǎi shàn.

In the Tang Dynasty, there was a corrupt official named Li Su who was tyrannical and domineering. The people suffered immensely and submitted complaints to the court. The emperor was furious and ordered that no leniency be shown. The Grand Minister of State immediately investigated the matter and brought Li Su and his accomplices to justice, confiscating all their property and turning it over to the state treasury. For a time, the people of Luoyang were elated. From then on, no one dared to act corruptly in the officialdom, and the governance of the Tang Dynasty was thus significantly improved.

Usage

用于对违法犯罪行为的处理，形容态度坚决，绝不宽容。

yòng yú duì wéifǎ fàn zuì xíngwéi de chǔlǐ, xíngróng tàidu jiānjué, jué bù kuānróng

Used to describe the handling of illegal and criminal acts, expressing a resolute attitude with no leniency.

Examples

  • 对犯罪分子，必须严惩不贷。

    duì fàn zuì fèn zi, bìxū yán chéng bù dài

    Criminals must be severely punished without leniency.

  • 对于那些触犯法律的人，我们要严惩不贷，绝不姑息。

    duì yú nà xiē chùfàn fǎlǜ de rén, wǒmen yào yán chéng bù dài, jué bù gūxī

    We must severely punish those who violate the law without leniency.

Related Idioms

  • 惩前毖后

  • 绳之以法

Opposite Idioms

  • 放任自流

  • 姑息养奸