shā杀killjī鸡chickenjǐng儆warnhóu猴monkey
Kill the chicken to scare the monkeys — make a public example to deter others.
Literal meaning
kill (杀) — chicken (鸡) — warn (儆) — monkey (猴)
Origin
A folk proverb of probable Qing-era origin, drawing on the idea that monkeys, despite their cleverness, can be controlled by witnessing a chicken's death. Used in political and managerial contexts to describe deterrence-by-public-punishment.
Examples
Gōng公sī司kāi开chú除le了nà那ge个yuán员gōng工，mù目dì的shì是shā杀jī鸡jǐng儆hóu猴。
The company fired that employee to make an example of him.
Shā杀jī鸡jǐng儆hóu猴de的cè策lüè略bù不yí一dìng定yǒu有xiào效。
The make-an-example strategy doesn't always work.
Usage & nuances
Often slightly critical — implies harsh, performative punishment. Common in commentary on management or politics.
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