明争暗斗 in English ming2 zheng1 an4 dou4 Meaning

Meanings

  • to fight openly and maneuver covertly (idiomatic expression)

Simplified Characters

明 争 暗 斗

Traditional Characters

明 爭 暗 鬥

Pinyin

ming2 zheng1 an4 dou4

Literal

Literal explanation, with pronunciation and meaning of each character.

明ming2Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) 争zheng1to strive for 暗an4variant of 暗[an4] 斗dou4abbr. for the Big Dipper constellation 北斗星[Bei3 dou3 xing1]