暴ぼう虎こ馮ひょう河が

also: ぼうこひょうか

ぼ

う

こ

ひょ

う

が

Meanings

noun

foolhardy courage; reckless bravery

yojijukugo (four-character idiom)

A yojijukugo describing rash, thoughtless courage—charging a tiger barehanded or crossing a river without a boat. Often used critically to contrast with true, considered bravery.

暴ぼう虎こ馮ひょう河がの勇ゆうは、真しんの勇ゆう気きとは言いえない。
Foolhardy courage like charging a tiger barehanded cannot be called true bravery.
彼かれの行こう動どうは暴ぼう虎こ馮ひょう河かに過すぎず、計けい画かく性せいがまったくなかった。
His actions were nothing more than reckless daring, with no planning whatsoever.

Kanji

暴outburst, rave, fret
虎tiger, drunkard
馮displeasure, proper name
河river

Related words

匹ひっ夫ぷの勇ゆう
Also means reckless courage, but emphasizes the foolish bravery of an ordinary person rather than the classical imagery of 暴虎馮河.
猪ちょ突とつ猛もう進しん
Means rushing headlong with reckless energy; focuses on the action of charging forward, while 暴虎馮河 highlights the foolhardy nature of the courage itself.

Written forms

暴虎馮河
- ぼうこひょうが
  Standard kanji spelling for this yojijukugo.
- ぼうこひょうか
  Alternate reading; less common than ぼうこひょうが.
ぼうこひょうか

Etymology

From the Chinese classic 'The Analects of Confucius' (Lúnyǔ), where Confucius contrasts foolhardy courage with thoughtful bravery. The phrase literally means 'attack a tiger barehanded and cross a river without a boat.'