swallow like a whale; annex or gobble up vast amounts
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 4 examplesverb
to gobble up; to annex (territory) like a whale
literaryA literary/formal idiom, often used in historical or political contexts to describe the aggressive, large-scale annexation of land or resources by a powerful entity.
Nà那
ge个
dà大
guó国
qǐ企
tú图
jīng鲸
tūn吞
qí其
ruò弱
xiǎo小
de的
lín邻
guó国
。
That major power attempted to annex its weaker neighbor.
Zài在
lì历
shǐ史
shàng上
，
kuò扩
zhāng张
zhǔ主
yì义
wǎng往
wǎng往
bàn伴
suí随
zhe着
cán蚕
shí食
jīng鲸
tūn吞
。
In history, expansionism has often been accompanied by nibbling away and gobbling up territory.
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Zhè这
ge个
kuà跨
guó国
gōng公
sī司
tōng通
guò过
shōu收
gòu购
，
jī几
hū乎
jīng鲸
tūn吞
le了
zhěng整
gè个
háng行
yè业
。
Through acquisitions, this multinational corporation almost gobbled up the entire industry.
Cán蚕
shí食
jīng鲸
tūn吞
shì是
qīn侵
lüè略
zhě者
cháng常
yòng用
de的
cè策
lüè略
。
Nibbling away and gobbling up is a strategy commonly used by aggressors.