杀鸡给猴看

shā jī gěi hóu kàn

lit. to kill a chicken in front of a monkey; fig. to make an example of sb (by punishment) to frighten others

杀

shā

to kill; to slay; to murder; to attack

鸡

jī

variant of 雞|鸡[ji1]

给

gěi

to

猴

hóu

monkey

看

kàn

to see; to look at