Chinese idiom · 成语
十面埋伏
Meaning
Ambush on ten sides; to be completely surrounded.
Character by character
Origin and story
Historical-literary imageThe expression evokes ambushes surrounding someone on every side. Later drama connects it with Xiang Yu’s defeat: the Yuan play Zhuan Kuai Tong (賺蒯通), act 1, asks how even the formidable Xiang Yu could escape such an encirclement. The phrase also appears in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, chapter 39, as a description of an apparently fearsome military threat.
It became the name of a celebrated pipa piece depicting the Chu–Han struggle. These literary and musical traditions elaborate the historical memory of Xiang Yu’s downfall. Ten emphasizes comprehensive encirclement rather than requiring ten compass directions. As an idiom, it can describe a trap or a situation with threats on every side.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
玩这个闯关游戏时，我总觉得前后左右都有陷阱，简直是十面埋伏。
Playing this level-based game, I feel there are traps in every direction—an ambush on all sides.
Often a dramatic comparison; 十 emphasizes all around, not a literal count.