Chinese idiom · 成语
螳螂捕蝉
Meaning
To focus on small gains while ignoring bigger threats.
Character by character
Origin and story
Philosophical fableIn Shanmu (山木) of Zhuangzi (莊子), Zhuang Zhou follows an unusual bird into a chestnut grove. He sees a cicada enjoying the shade, a mantis intent on catching it, and the bird intent on the mantis. Each is drawn toward an advantage while overlooking its own vulnerability. Zhuang Zhou, who has been preparing to shoot the bird, realizes he too has been distracted; he leaves and is reproached by the grove’s keeper.
A parallel in Shuo Yuan (說苑), volume 9, features a yellow bird and a young adviser warning a king against an attack. This helps explain the familiar longer saying 螳螂捕蝉，黄雀在后. The versions share the warning about unseen danger but have different frames.
In everyday life
两家店只顾争抢同一批顾客，却没注意到新平台正在抢走生意，真是螳螂捕蝉，黄雀在后。
The two shops were fighting over the same customers while a new platform was taking business from both—a threat neither noticed.
Often used with 黄雀在后 to show a competitor or danger beyond the immediate contest.