为虎添翼

Origin and story

Han Feizi's discussion of political power, Nan Shi, quotes a warning from a Zhou text: do not attach wings to a tiger, or it will fly into towns and devour people. The passage then applies the image to giving authority to an unworthy person. A dangerous character becomes far more destructive when supplied with the means to act. The classical wording uses fu, 'attach'; the later variant uses tian, 'add.' Unlike the often complimentary ru hu tian yi, this expression normally warns against strengthening someone harmful. The tiger is an analogy in a political argument, not an animal from a historical adventure.