鸿门宴

Traditional form:

鴻門宴

Pinyin (reading):

Hóngményàn

Definitions:

• Hongmen feast
• (fig.) banquet set up with the aim of murdering a guest
• refers to a famous episode in 206 BC when future Han emperor Liu Bang 劉邦／刘邦 ( Liú Bāng) escaped attempted murder by his rival Xiang Yu 項羽／项羽 ( Xiàng Yǔ)

Characters:

• 鸿 - a species of wild swan; vast
• 门 - gate, door, entrance, opening
• 宴 - banquet, feast; to entertain

Traditional characters:

• 鴻 - a species of wild swan; vast
• 門 - gate, door, entrance, opening
• 宴 - banquet, feast; to entertain