avenge a defeat; regain one's honor
Idiomatic expression derived from a Chinese historical story. Used when someone who has suffered a humiliating defeat later works hard to restore their reputation or get revenge.
He continued rigorous training every day to avenge his past defeat and restore his honor.
A year after the crushing defeat, the team is practicing hard to wipe away the shame of that loss.
雪辱 is a more common, concise noun meaning 'vindication' or 'clearing one's name', while 会稽の恥を雪ぐ is a full idiomatic phrase with a specific historical allusion.
リベンジ is a casual loanword for 'revenge' or 'rematch', lacking the literary and historical weight of 会稽の恥を雪ぐ.
Standard kanji form using 雪ぐ for 'to wipe away'.
Kana spelling of the verb part; common in modern writing.
From the story of King Goujian of Yue, who endured humiliation after defeat by the state of Wu and later rebuilt his kingdom to take revenge. The phrase literally means 'to wash away the shame of Kuaiji' (the mountain where he was defeated).