知己知彼 zhī jǐ zhī bǐ — know both yourself and your enemy

知己知彼
zhī jǐ zhī bǐ

Characters: 知 · 己 · 知 · 彼

Definitions

  1. know both yourself and your enemy

More definitions

CC-CEDICT

  1. know yourself, know your enemy (idiom, from Sunzi's "The Art of War" 孫子兵法|孙子兵法[Sun1 zi3 Bing1 fa3])

ExtDict

  1. 原意是如果对敌我双方的情况都能了解透彻，打起仗来就可以立于不败之地。泛指对双方情况都很了解。

Examples

  • 打仗要知己知彼。

    In war, know yourself and know your opponent.

  • 知己知彼，百战不殆。

    Know yourself and your foe, and in a hundred battles you are never imperiled.

  • 谈判之前，务必知己知彼。

    Before negotiating, be sure to know both sides.