轉彎抹角

ㄓㄨㄢˇ ㄨㄢ ㄇㄛˋ ㄐㄧㄠˇ

чжуаньваньмоцзяо

/ʈ͡ʂu̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹ wän⁵⁵ mu̯ɔ⁵¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡syːn³³ waːn⁵⁵ muːt̚² kɔːk̚³/

/t͡syːn³³ waːn⁵⁵ muːt̚³ kɔːk̚³/

/t͡syːn³³ waːn⁵⁵ muːt̚² kɔːk̚³/

/t͡syːn³³ waːn⁵⁵ muːt̚³ kɔːk̚³/

to twist and turn; to turn a corner here and there

beat around the bush
beat around the bush

(figurative) to speak in a roundabout way; to beat around the bush


狗屁倒灶

ㄍㄡˇ ㄆㄧˋ ㄉㄠˇ ㄗㄠˋ

гоупидаоцзао

/koʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ pʰi⁵¹ tɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/koʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ pʰi⁵¹ tɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sɑʊ̯⁵¹/

(dialectal Mandarin, Wu) disorganized; chaotic


修身養性

ㄒㄧㄡ ㄕㄣ ㄧㄤˇ ㄒㄧㄥˋ

сюшэнь янсин

/ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵ ʂən⁵⁵ jɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕiŋ⁵¹/

/sɐu̯⁵⁵ sɐn⁵⁵ jœːŋ¹³ sɪŋ³³/

/ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵ ʂən⁵⁵ jɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕiŋ⁵¹/

/sɐu̯⁵⁵ sɐn⁵⁵ jœːŋ¹³ sɪŋ³³/

to behave properly to improve one's character


排到尖沙咀

/pʰaːi̯²¹ tou̯³³ t͡siːm⁵⁵ saː⁵⁵ t͡sɵy̯³⁵/

(Hong Kong Cantonese) to be extremely popular


台鑒

/tʰaɪ̯³⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/tʰɔːi̯²¹ kaːm³³/

/tʰaɪ̯³⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/tʰɔːi̯²¹ kaːm³³/


靚到沊一聲

靓到沊一声
靚到dum一聲

/lɛːŋ³³ tou̯³³ tɐm³⁵ jɐt̚⁵ sɛːŋ⁵⁵/

/lɛːŋ³³ tou̯³³ tɐm³⁵ jɐt̚⁵ sɛːŋ⁵⁵/

“Go! Go! Go! Go! Go!” “How can you let her go? She's so pretty!” “Hehe, I'm saying that she's gorgeous!” (original text was a pun of 沊 (dam², “sound of object dropping into water”) and 抌 (dam², “to throw away”))

1994, Stephen Chow, Hail the Judge (spoken by Tongzhi Emperor)

「沊！沊！沊！沊！沊！」「唔係呀嗎？咁正，你都抌？」「嘿嘿，靚到沊一聲」！

「沊！沊！沊！沊！沊！」「唔系呀吗？咁正，你都抌？」「嘿嘿，靓到沊一声」！

(Cantonese) very beautiful, especially of a woman


喊苦喊忽

/haːm³³ fuː³⁵ haːm³³ fɐt̚⁵/

/haːm³³ fuː³⁵ haːm³³ fɐt̚⁵/


藤條炆豬肉

/tʰɐŋ²¹ tʰiːu̯²¹⁻³⁵ mɐn⁵⁵ t͡syː⁵⁵ jʊk̚²/

If you still don't behave yourself, I'll cane you tonight!

nei⁵ zoi³ jai⁵⁻¹ jai⁵⁻¹, gam¹ maan⁵ zau⁶ sik⁶ tang⁴ tiu⁴⁻² man¹ zyu¹ juk⁶ gaa³ laa¹!

你再曳曳，今晚就食藤條炆豬肉㗎啦！

你再曳曳，今晚就食藤条炆猪肉㗎啦！

(Cantonese) caning, especially as corporal punishment for children


輸甲褪褲

/su⁴⁴⁻³³ ka(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ tʰŋ̍¹¹⁻⁵³ kʰɔ¹¹/

/su⁴⁴⁻³³ ka(ʔ)³²⁻⁴¹ tʰŋ̍²¹⁻⁴¹ kʰɔ²¹/

/su⁴⁴⁻³³ ka(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ tʰŋ̍¹¹⁻⁵³ kʰɔ¹¹/

/su⁴⁴⁻³³ ka(ʔ)³²⁻⁴¹ tʰŋ̍²¹⁻⁴¹ kʰɔ²¹/

褪褲／褪裤 is a near-homophonic pun of 當褲 (tǹg-khò͘, “pawn your [under]pants”) (so as to pay debt), describing an exaggerated situation when suffering tremendous losses in gambling because there is nothing more to lose.

(Southern Min) to suffer tremendous losses


今天的我打倒昨天的我

ㄐㄧㄣ ㄊㄧㄢ ˙ㄉㄜ ㄨㄛˇ ㄉㄚˇ ㄉㄠˇ ㄗㄨㄛˊ ㄊㄧㄢ ˙ㄉㄜ ㄨㄛˇ

gam¹ tin¹ dik¹ ngo⁵ daa² dou² zok³ tin¹ dik¹ ngo⁵

jīntiān de wǒ dǎdǎo zuótiān de wǒ [Phonetic:jīntiāndewǒdádǎozuótiāndewǒ]

chin¹-tʻien¹ tê⁵ wo³ ta³-tao³ tso²-tʻien¹ tê⁵ wo³

цзиньтянь дэ во дадао цзотянь дэ во

/t͡ɕin⁵⁵ tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ d̥ə² wɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ tä²¹⁴⁻³⁵ tɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡su̯ɔ³⁵ tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ d̥ə² wɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

gām tīn dīk ngóh dá dóu jok tīn dīk ngóh

gam¹ tin¹ dik⁷ ngo⁵ daa² dou² dzok⁸ tin¹ dik⁷ ngo⁵

gem¹ tin¹ dig¹ ngo⁵ da² dou² zog³ tin¹ dig¹ ngo⁵

/kɐm⁵⁵ tʰiːn⁵⁵ tɪk̚⁵ ŋɔː¹³ taː³⁵ tou̯³⁵ t͡sɔːk̚³ tʰiːn⁵⁵ tɪk̚⁵ ŋɔː¹³/

to deny what one has previously said; to not keep one's words, to deny one's words


輸到脫褲

ㄕㄨ ㄉㄠˋ ㄊㄨㄛ ㄎㄨˋ

/ʂu⁵⁵ tɑʊ̯⁵¹ tʰu̯ɔ⁵⁵ kʰu⁵¹/

/ʂu⁵⁵ tɑʊ̯⁵¹ tʰu̯ɔ⁵⁵ kʰu⁵¹/

Calque of Hokkien 輸甲褪褲／输甲褪裤 (su kah thǹg-khò͘).


坐而論道

ㄗㄨㄛˋ ㄦˊ ㄌㄨㄣˋ ㄉㄠˋ

цзоэрлуньдао

/t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ lu̯ən⁵¹⁻⁵³ tɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/t͡sɔː²² jiː²¹ lɵn²² tou̯²²/

/t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ lu̯ən⁵¹⁻⁵³ tɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/t͡sɔː²² jiː²¹ lɵn²² tou̯²²/

(derogatory) to indulge in empty talk instead of doing anything useful


水花四濺

ㄕㄨㄟˇ ㄏㄨㄚ ㄙˋ ㄐㄧㄢˋ

шуйхуасыцзянь

/ʂu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu̯ä⁵⁵ sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹/

the crashing splash of water after it is struck or obstructed (as in waves crashing on rocks)


非錢不行

ㄈㄟ ㄑㄧㄢˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄒㄧㄥˊ

фэйцяньбусин

/feɪ̯⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn³⁵ pu⁵¹ ɕiŋ³⁵/

/feɪ̯⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn³⁵ pu⁵¹ ɕiŋ³⁵/

nothing can be done without money (to pay off corrupt officials)


頓口無言

ㄉㄨㄣˋ ㄎㄡˇ ㄨˊ ㄧㄢˊ

/tu̯ən⁵¹ kʰoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ u³⁵ jɛn³⁵/

/tu̯ən⁵¹ kʰoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ u³⁵ jɛn³⁵/


打開門做生意

/taː³⁵ hɔːi̯⁵⁵ muːn²¹ t͡sou̯²² saːŋ⁵⁵ jiː³³/

(Cantonese) to welcome everyone; to have an open-door policy


官官相衛

ㄍㄨㄢ ㄍㄨㄢ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄨㄟˋ

гуаньгуаньсянвэй

/ku̯än⁵⁵ ku̯än⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ weɪ̯⁵¹/

/kuːn⁵⁵ kuːn⁵⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵ wɐi̯²²/

/ku̯än⁵⁵ ku̯än⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ weɪ̯⁵¹/

/kuːn⁵⁵ kuːn⁵⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵ wɐi̯²²/

(derogatory) officials shielding each other; officials covering up for each other


十二生相變透透

/t͡sap̚⁴⁻³² li³³⁻¹¹ sĩ⁴⁴⁻³³ siũ¹¹⁻⁵³ piɛn¹¹⁻⁵³ tʰau¹¹⁻⁵³ tʰau¹¹/

/t͡sap̚⁴⁻³² zi³³⁻²¹ sẽ⁴⁴⁻³³ siũ²¹⁻⁴¹ piɛn²¹⁻⁴¹ tʰau²¹⁻⁴¹ tʰau²¹/

(Taiwanese Hokkien, idiomatic) to have tried all sorts of jobs and still experiencing misfortune


攞嚟賤

/lɔː³⁵ lɐi̯²¹ t͡siːn²²/

/lɔː³⁵ lei̯²¹ t͡siːn²²/

/lɔː⁵⁵ liː⁵⁵ t͡siːn⁵⁵/

/lɔː³⁵ lɐi̯²¹ t͡siːn²²/

/lɔː³⁵ lei̯²¹ t͡siːn²²/

/lɔː⁵⁵ liː⁵⁵ t͡siːn⁵⁵/

make a rod for one's own back
make a rod for one's own back

(Cantonese) to ask for trouble; to make a rod for one's own back


𡳞鳥比雞腿

𡳞鸟比鸡腿
𡳞鳥比鷄腿
玍鳥比雞腿/玍鳥比鷄腿/玍鸟比鸡腿

/lan³³⁻²¹ t͡siau⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ pi⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ ke⁴⁴⁻³³ tʰui⁴¹/

/lan³³⁻¹¹ t͡siau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ pi⁵³⁻⁴⁴ kue⁴⁴⁻³³ tʰui⁵³/

(Hokkien, vulgar) to compare apples and oranges


陸榮廷睇相——唔衰攞來衰

head

陸榮廷睇相——唔衰攞來衰

/lʊk̚² wɪŋ²¹ tʰɪŋ²¹ tʰɐi̯³⁵ sœːŋ³³ m̩²¹ sɵy̯⁵⁵ lɔː³⁵ lei̯²¹ sɵy̯⁵⁵/

/lʊk̚² wɪŋ²¹ tʰɪŋ²¹ tʰɐi̯³⁵ sœːŋ³³ m̩²¹ sɵy̯⁵⁵ lɔː³⁵ lɐi̯²¹ sɵy̯⁵⁵/

From a legend that the Guangxi warlord Lu Rongting once met a fortune teller, but dressed up like a poor person to prevent people from recognizing him. Despite that, his disguise turned out to be useless to the fortune teller, and he ridiculed Lu by telling that he reaped what he sown to become poor (in some versions of the legend, the fortune teller said that Lu would have trouble in the future). Later, Lu was defeated by other cliques and fell from power, making what the fortune teller told him true.

陆荣廷睇相——唔衰𫽋來衰
陸雲廷睇相——唔衰攞來衰

Lu Rongting sees a fortune teller - asking for trouble

(Cantonese, xiehouyu) to ask for trouble; to make a rod for one's own back


食人隻車

/sɪk̚² jɐn²¹ t͡sɛːk̚³ kɵy̯⁵⁵/

/sɪk̚² jɐn²¹ t͡sɛːk̚³ kɵy̯⁵⁵/

In Chinese chess, the rook (車／车 or 俥／伡) can move forward, backward or sideways on any rank, and can move as many squares as it likes as long as it is not blocked by another piece or the square is not occupied, similar to Western chess. This makes it the second most important piece in the game.

(Cantonese) to have unreasonable demands; to exploit or expropriate the belongings of others


壽星公吊頸——嫌命長

the God of Longevity hangs himself - dissatisfied for living too long

/sɐu̯²² sɪŋ⁵⁵ kʊŋ⁵⁵ tiːu̯³³ kɛːŋ³⁵ jiːm²¹ mɛːŋ²² t͡sʰœːŋ²¹/

(Cantonese, xiehouyu) to look for trouble (a phrase used to describe people who do dangerous things)


公說公有理，婆說婆有理

公説公有理，婆説婆有理
公说公有理，婆说婆有理

The grandfather/husband says that he has his reason, the grandmother/wife says that she has her reason too

ㄍㄨㄥ ㄕㄨㄛ ㄍㄨㄥ ㄧㄡˇ ㄌㄧˇ

ㄆㄛˊ ㄕㄨㄛ ㄆㄛˊ ㄧㄡˇ ㄌㄧˇ

gung¹ syut³ gung¹ jau⁵ lei⁵, po⁴ syut³ po⁴ jau⁵ lei⁵

gōng shuō gōng yǒulǐ, pó shuō pó yǒulǐ [Phonetic:gōngshuōgōngyóulǐ,póshuōpóyóulǐ]

гун шо гун юли

по шо по юли

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ ʂu̯ɔ⁵⁵ kʊŋ⁵⁵ joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ li²¹⁴⁻²¹ pʰu̯ɔ³⁵ ʂu̯ɔ⁵⁵ pʰu̯ɔ³⁵ joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ li²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

gūng syut gūng yáuh léih, pòh syut pòh yáuh léih

gung¹ syt⁸ gung¹ jau⁵ lei⁵, po⁴ syt⁸ po⁴ jau⁵ lei⁵

gung¹ xud³ gung¹ yeo⁵ léi⁵, po⁴ xud³ po⁴ yeo⁵ léi⁵

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ syːt̚³ kʊŋ⁵⁵ jɐu̯¹³ lei̯¹³ pʰɔː²¹ syːt̚³ pʰɔː²¹ jɐu̯¹³ lei̯¹³/

(in an argument) the situation where both parties claim to be right and cannot reach a consensus

人有人情理，賊有賊情理／人有人情理，贼有贼情理

Lâng ū lâng chêng-lí, chha̍t ū chha̍t chêng-lí


阿聾送殯——唔聽你支死人笛

阿聾送殯——唔聽你支死人笛

阿聋送殡——唔听你支死人笛

A deaf person attends a funeral - won't listen to your flute for the dead people/damn flute

/aː³³ lʊŋ²¹ sʊŋ³³ pɐn³³ m̩²¹ tʰɛːŋ⁵⁵ nei̯¹³ t͡siː⁵⁵ sei̯³⁵ jɐn²¹ tɛːk̚²⁻³⁵/

dance to someone's tune
dance to someone's tune

(Cantonese) to not dance to someone's tune


日本首相——左揗右揗

/jɐt̚² puːn³⁵ sɐu̯³⁵ sœːŋ³³ t͡sɔː³⁵ tʰɐn²¹ jɐu̯²² tʰɐn²¹/

A near-homophonic pun on the Cantonese pronunciation of the former Japanese Prime Minister Eisaku Sato's name 佐藤 (zo³ tang⁴), from Japanese 佐藤(さとう) (satō).

日本首相——左騰右騰
日本首相——佐藤右藤

Prime Minister of Japan - Sato Uto/running to and fro

Are you busy recently?
(Literally, “Have you become the prime minister of Japan recently?”)

nei⁵ zeoi³ gan⁶ hai⁶ mai⁶ zou⁶ zo² jat⁶ bun² sau² soeng³ aa³?

你最近係咪做咗日本首相呀？

你最近系咪做咗日本首相呀？

(Cantonese) to be very busy such that one is rushing to everywhere


埋右

/maːi̯²¹ jɐu̯²²/

/maːi̯²¹ jɐu̯²²/

Pun on homophonous 咗 (zo², “sentence final particle used to denote past action”) and 左 (zo², “left”)

n-g

笑咗，笑埋右


傷風敗俗

ㄕㄤ ㄈㄥ ㄅㄞˋ ㄙㄨˊ

/ʂɑŋ⁵⁵ fɤŋ⁵⁵ paɪ̯⁵¹ su³⁵/

/sœːŋ⁵⁵ fʊŋ⁵⁵ paːi̯²² t͡sʊk̚²/

/ʂɑŋ⁵⁵ fɤŋ⁵⁵ paɪ̯⁵¹ su³⁵/

/sœːŋ⁵⁵ fʊŋ⁵⁵ paːi̯²² t͡sʊk̚²/


握髮吐哺

ㄨㄛˋ ㄈㄚˋ ㄊㄨˇ ㄅㄨˇ

ㄨㄛˋ ㄈㄚˇ ㄊㄨˇ ㄅㄨˇ

/wɔ⁵¹⁻⁵³ fä⁵¹ tʰu²¹⁴⁻³⁵ pu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/wɔ⁵¹ fä²¹⁴⁻³⁵ tʰu²¹⁴⁻³⁵ pu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/aːk̚⁵ faːt̚³ tʰou̯³³ pou̯²²/

/wɔ⁵¹⁻⁵³ fä⁵¹ tʰu²¹⁴⁻³⁵ pu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/wɔ⁵¹ fä²¹⁴⁻³⁵ tʰu²¹⁴⁻³⁵ pu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/aːk̚⁵ faːt̚³ tʰou̯³³ pou̯²²/

From The Biography of the Duke of Zhou (魯周公世家) in the Records of the Grand Historian

[the Duke of Zhou said,] " […] Yet each time I bathe, I am called away three times, wringing out my hair in haste; each time I dine, I rush off three times, spitting out my food in haste, in order to wait upon some gentleman. I do so because I am always fearful that I may otherwise fail to gain the service of a worthy man."

The Records of the Grand Historian, by Sima Qian, c. 91 BCE

“rán wǒ yī mù sān wò fà, yī fàn sān tù bǔ, qǐ yǐ dài shì, yóu kǒng shī tiānxià zhī xiánrén.”

「然我一沐三握髮，一飯三[[#Chinese|]]吐哺，起以待士，猶恐失天下之賢人。」

「然我一沐三握发，一饭三[[#Chinese|]]吐哺，起以待士，犹恐失天下之贤人。」

Duke of Zhou
Records of the Grand Historian


兩頭唔到岸

/lœːŋ¹³ tʰɐu̯²¹ m̩²¹ tou̯³³ ŋɔːn²²/

/lœːŋ¹³ tʰɐu̯²¹ m̩²¹ tou̯³³ ŋɔːn²²/

fall between two stools
fall between two stools


五風十雨

It winds every five days and rains every ten days

/u²¹⁴⁻²¹ fɤŋ⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩³⁵ y²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/u²¹⁴⁻²¹ fɤŋ⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩³⁵ y²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

favorable weather conditions for farming


飛揚跋扈

ㄈㄟ ㄧㄤˊ ㄅㄚˊ ㄏㄨˋ

/feɪ̯⁵⁵ jɑŋ³⁵ pä³⁵ xu⁵¹/

/fei̯⁵⁵ jœːŋ²¹ pɐt̚² wuː²²/

/feɪ̯⁵⁵ jɑŋ³⁵ pä³⁵ xu⁵¹/

/fei̯⁵⁵ jœːŋ²¹ pɐt̚² wuː²²/


老成持重

ㄌㄠˇ ㄔㄥˊ ㄔˊ ㄓㄨㄥˋ

лаочэн чичжун

/lɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʰɤŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵¹/

/lou̯¹³ sɪŋ²¹ t͡sʰiː²¹ t͡sʊŋ²²/

/lɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʰɤŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵¹/

/lou̯¹³ sɪŋ²¹ t͡sʰiː²¹ t͡sʊŋ²²/


頂禮膜拜

ㄉㄧㄥˇ ㄌㄧˇ ㄇㄛˊ ㄅㄞˋ

ㄉㄧㄥˇ ㄌㄧˇ ㄇㄛˋ ㄅㄞˋ

/tiŋ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ li²¹⁴⁻²¹ mu̯ɔ³⁵ paɪ̯⁵¹/

/tiŋ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ li²¹⁴⁻²¹ mu̯ɔ⁵¹⁻⁵³ paɪ̯⁵¹/

/tɪŋ³⁵ lɐi̯¹³ mou̯²¹ paːi̯³³/

/tiŋ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ li²¹⁴⁻²¹ mu̯ɔ³⁵ paɪ̯⁵¹/

/tiŋ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ li²¹⁴⁻²¹ mu̯ɔ⁵¹⁻⁵³ paɪ̯⁵¹/

/tɪŋ³⁵ lɐi̯¹³ mou̯²¹ paːi̯³³/

(sometimes sarcastic) to worship somebody with great respect


阿崩叫狗——越叫越走

/aː³³ pɐŋ⁵⁵ kiːu̯³³ kɐu̯³⁵ jyːt̚² kiːu̯³³ jyːt̚² t͡sɐu̯³⁵/

狗 (gau²) and 走 (zau²) have similar pronunciation in Cantonese except the initial consonants. The dog may hear 走 (zau², “run”) instead of 狗 (gau², “dog”) when the speech is not clear.

A person with a cleft lip calls a dog - the more he calls, the farther it runs

(Cantonese) the more control one exerts on someone, the less he/she complies; to not listen to others and go one's way


插針都插唔入

can't even insert a needle [between people]

/t͡sʰaːp̚³ t͡sɐm⁵⁵ tou̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰaːp̚³ m̩²¹ jɐp̚²/

(Cantonese) densely packed; extremely crowded; impenetrable


沒齒難忘

ㄇㄛˋ ㄔˇ ㄋㄢˊ ㄨㄤˋ

/mu̯ɔ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ nän³⁵ wɑŋ⁵¹/

/muːt̚² t͡sʰiː³⁵ naːn²¹ mɔːŋ²¹/

/mu̯ɔ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ nän³⁵ wɑŋ⁵¹/

/muːt̚² t͡sʰiː³⁵ naːn²¹ mɔːŋ²¹/

I shall never forget that you have saved my life.

您的救命之恩，我沒齒難忘。

您的救命之恩，我没齿难忘。

memorable for the rest of one's life (usually for describing someone else's mercy or kind deed)


無頭公案

ㄨˊ ㄊㄡˊ ㄍㄨㄥ ㄢˋ

/u³⁵ tʰoʊ̯³⁵ kʊŋ⁵⁵ ˀän⁵¹/

/mou̯²¹ tʰɐu̯²¹ kʊŋ⁵⁵ ɔːn³³/

/bo²⁴⁻²² tʰau²⁴⁻²² kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² an²¹/

/bo²⁴⁻²² tʰau²⁴⁻²² kɔŋ³³ an⁴¹/

/bo¹³⁻²² tʰau¹³⁻²² kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² an²¹/

/bo²⁴⁻¹¹ tʰau²⁴⁻¹¹ kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ an¹¹/

/bɤ²³⁻³³ tʰau²³⁻³³ kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ an²¹/

/u³⁵ tʰoʊ̯³⁵ kʊŋ⁵⁵ ˀän⁵¹/

/mou̯²¹ tʰɐu̯²¹ kʊŋ⁵⁵ ɔːn³³/

/bo²⁴⁻²² tʰau²⁴⁻²² kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² an²¹/

/bo²⁴⁻²² tʰau²⁴⁻²² kɔŋ³³ an⁴¹/

/bo¹³⁻²² tʰau¹³⁻²² kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² an²¹/

/bo²⁴⁻¹¹ tʰau²⁴⁻¹¹ kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ an¹¹/

/bɤ²³⁻³³ tʰau²³⁻³³ kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ an²¹/


跟車太貼

/kɐn⁵⁵ t͡sʰɛː⁵⁵ tʰaːi̯³³ tʰiːp̚³/

/kɐn⁵⁵ t͡sʰɛː⁵⁵ tʰaːi̯³³ tʰiːp̚³/

(Cantonese) to follow the car ahead of oneself too closely

(Hong Kong Cantonese, neologism, figuratively) to follow the mainstream opinion too closely


海枯石爛

ㄏㄞˇ ㄎㄨ ㄕˊ ㄌㄢˋ

/xaɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ kʰu⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩³⁵ län⁵¹/

/hɔːi̯³⁵ fuː⁵⁵ sɛːk̚² laːn²²/

/xaɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ kʰu⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩³⁵ län⁵¹/

/hɔːi̯³⁵ fuː⁵⁵ sɛːk̚² laːn²²/


形容枯槁

ㄒㄧㄥˊ ㄖㄨㄥˊ ㄎㄨ ㄍㄠˇ

синжун кугао

/ɕiŋ³⁵ ʐʊŋ³⁵ kʰu⁵⁵ kɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/ɕiŋ³⁵ ʐʊŋ³⁵ kʰu⁵⁵ kɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/


風流雲散

ㄈㄥ ㄌㄧㄡˊ ㄩㄣˊ ㄙㄢˋ

фэнлююньсань

/fɤŋ⁵⁵ li̯oʊ̯³⁵ yn³⁵ sän⁵¹/

/fʊŋ⁵⁵ lɐu̯²¹ wɐn²¹ saːn³³/

/fɤŋ⁵⁵ li̯oʊ̯³⁵ yn³⁵ sän⁵¹/

/fʊŋ⁵⁵ lɐu̯²¹ wɐn²¹ saːn³³/


肝腸寸斷

ㄍㄢ ㄔㄤˊ ㄘㄨㄣˋ ㄉㄨㄢˋ

ганьчанцуньдуань

/kän⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ³⁵ t͡sʰu̯ən⁵¹⁻⁵³ tu̯än⁵¹/

/kɔːn⁵⁵ t͡sʰœːŋ²¹ t͡sʰyːn³³ tyːn²²/

/kän⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ³⁵ t͡sʰu̯ən⁵¹⁻⁵³ tu̯än⁵¹/

/kɔːn⁵⁵ t͡sʰœːŋ²¹ t͡sʰyːn³³ tyːn²²/


俯仰之間

ㄈㄨˇ ㄧㄤˇ ㄓ ㄐㄧㄢ

фуянчжицзянь

/fu²¹⁴⁻³⁵ jɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵⁵/

/fuː³⁵ jœːŋ¹³ t͡siː⁵⁵ kaːn⁵⁵/

/fu²¹⁴⁻³⁵ jɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵⁵/

/fuː³⁵ jœːŋ¹³ t͡siː⁵⁵ kaːn⁵⁵/

It only takes an instant for a big and strong power to turn into a small and weak one.

Yǐ dà wéi xiǎo, yǐ qiáng wéi ruò, zài fǔyǎngzhījiān ěr.

以大為小，以強為弱，在俯仰之間耳。

以大为小，以强为弱，在俯仰之间耳。


定分止爭

ㄉㄧㄥˋ ㄈㄣ ㄓˇ ㄓㄥ

динфэньчжичжэн

dinfɛnʹčžičžɛn

/tiŋ⁵¹ fən⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵⁵/

/tiŋ⁵¹ fən⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵⁵/


唔知個……字點寫

doesn't know how to write the character for...

/m̩²¹ t͡siː⁵⁵ kɔː³³ t͡siː²² tiːm³⁵ sɛː³⁵/

does not think about the consequences of a certain action (literally, "does not know how to write the character for 'death' ")

唔知個死字點寫

唔知个死字点写

to be shameless (literally, "does not know how to write the character for 'shame' ")

唔知個醜字點寫

唔知个丑字点写

has never lost (literally, "does not know how to write the character for 'loss' ")

唔知個輸字點寫

唔知个输字点写

(Cantonese) to not have any sense of something; to not be afraid of something


春風得意

ㄔㄨㄣ ㄈㄥ ㄉㄜˊ ㄧˋ

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən⁵⁵ fɤŋ⁵⁵ tɤ³⁵ i⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɵn⁵⁵ fʊŋ⁵⁵ tɐk̚⁵ jiː³³/

/t͡sʰun²⁴⁻¹¹ fuŋ²⁴ tet̚² i⁵⁵/

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən⁵⁵ fɤŋ⁵⁵ tɤ³⁵ i⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɵn⁵⁵ fʊŋ⁵⁵ tɐk̚⁵ jiː³³/

/t͡sʰun²⁴⁻¹¹ fuŋ²⁴ tet̚² i⁵⁵/

to ride high; to feel pleasant because of success


眼大睇過龍

/ŋaːn¹³ taːi̯²² tʰɐi̯³⁵ kʷɔː³³ lʊŋ²¹/

/ŋaːn¹³ taːi̯²² tʰɐi̯³⁵ kʷɔː³³ lʊŋ²¹/

(Cantonese) to overlook something right in front of someone; to miss something obvious


背脊骨落

/puːi̯³³ t͡sɛːk̚³ kʷɐt̚⁵ lɔːk̚²/

/puːi̯³³ t͡sɛːk̚³ kʷɐt̚⁵ lɔːk̚²/

(Cantonese) to have obtained benefits but cannot enjoy them or could only do so uncomfortably


嘈冤巴閉

/t͡sʰou̯²¹ jyːn⁵⁵ paː⁵⁵ pɐi̯³³/

/t͡sʰou̯²¹ jyːn⁵⁵ paː⁵⁵ pɐi̯³³/

嘈喧巴閉 嘈喧巴閉#Chinese


講就天下無敵，做就無能為力

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講就天下無敵，做就無能為力

讲就天下无敌，做就无能为力

gong² zau⁶ tin¹ haa⁶ mou⁴ dik⁶, zou⁶ zau⁶ mou⁴ nang⁴ wai⁴ lik⁶

góng jauh tīn hah mòuh dihk, jouh jauh mòuh nàhng wàih lihk

gong² dzau⁶ tin¹ haa⁶ mou⁴ dik⁹, dzou⁶ dzau⁶ mou⁴ nang⁴ wai⁴ lik⁹

gong² zeo⁶ tin¹ ha⁶ mou⁴ dig⁶, zou⁶ zeo⁶ mou⁴ neng⁴ wei⁴ lig⁶

/kɔːŋ³⁵ t͡sɐu̯²² tʰiːn⁵⁵ haː²² mou̯²¹ tɪk̚² t͡sou̯²² t͡sɐu̯²² mou̯²¹ nɐŋ²¹ wɐi̯²¹ lɪk̚²/

講就天下無敵，做就有心無力 講就天下無敵，做就有心無力#Chinese

讲就天下无敌，做就有心无力 讲就天下无敌，做就有心无力#Chinese

(Cantonese) Synonym of 講就天下無敵，做就有心無力／讲就天下无敌，做就有心无力

Synonym of 講就天下無敵，做就有心無力／讲就天下无敌，做就有心无力


講就天下無敵，做就有心無力

講就天下無敵，做就有心無力

讲就天下无敌，做就有心无力

gong² zau⁶ tin¹ haa⁶ mou⁴ dik⁶, zou⁶ zau⁶ jau⁵ sam¹ mou⁴ lik⁶

góng jauh tīn hah mòuh dihk, jouh jauh yáuh sām mòuh lihk

gong² dzau⁶ tin¹ haa⁶ mou⁴ dik⁹, dzou⁶ dzau⁶ jau⁵ sam¹ mou⁴ lik⁹

gong² zeo⁶ tin¹ ha⁶ mou⁴ dig⁶, zou⁶ zeo⁶ yeo⁵ sem¹ mou⁴ lig⁶

/kɔːŋ³⁵ t͡sɐu̯²² tʰiːn⁵⁵ haː²² mou̯²¹ tɪk̚² t͡sou̯²² t͡sɐu̯²² jɐu̯¹³ sɐm⁵⁵ mou̯²¹ lɪk̚²/

all bark and no bite
all bark and no bite

(Cantonese) all bark and no bite; powerful on one's words, a fool on one's actions

講就天下無敵，做就無能為力／讲就天下无敌，做就无能为力

gong2 zau6 tin1 haa6 mou4 dik6, zou6 zau6 mou4 nang4 wai4 lik6

講就兇狠，做就碌撚／讲就凶狠，做就碌撚

gong2 zau6 hung1 han2, zou6 zau6 luk1 lan2


博而不精

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (博而不精):
* → Korean: 박이부정(博而不精) (bagibujeong)

ㄅㄛˊ ㄦˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄐㄧㄥ

/pu̯ɔ³⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ pu⁵¹ t͡ɕiŋ⁵⁵/

/pɔːk̚³ jiː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ t͡sɪŋ⁵⁵/

/pu̯ɔ³⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ pu⁵¹ t͡ɕiŋ⁵⁵/

/pɔːk̚³ jiː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ t͡sɪŋ⁵⁵/

jack of all trades, master of none
jack of all trades, master of none

to be a jack of all trades, master of none


置之度外

ㄓˋ ㄓ ㄉㄨˋ ㄨㄞˋ

/ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ tu⁵¹⁻⁵³ waɪ̯⁵¹/

/t͡siː³³ t͡siː⁵⁵ tou̯²² ŋɔːi̯²²/

/ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ tu⁵¹⁻⁵³ waɪ̯⁵¹/

/t͡siː³³ t͡siː⁵⁵ tou̯²² ŋɔːi̯²²/

to leave (one's own safety or interest) out of consideration


如魚得水

ㄖㄨˊ ㄩˊ ㄉㄜˊ ㄕㄨㄟˇ

/ʐu³⁵ y³⁵ tɤ³⁵ ʂu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jyː²¹ jyː²¹ tɐk̚⁵ sɵy̯³⁵/

/ʐu³⁵ y³⁵ tɤ³⁵ ʂu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jyː²¹ jyː²¹ tɐk̚⁵ sɵy̯³⁵/

to find oneself in a suitable environment where one can perform well, or to meet people who share common ideas or interests


揚長避短

ㄧㄤˊ ㄔㄤˊ ㄅㄧˋ ㄉㄨㄢˇ

янчанбидуань

/jɑŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ³⁵ pi⁵¹ tu̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jœːŋ²¹ t͡sʰœːŋ²¹ pei̯²² tyːn³⁵/

/jɑŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ³⁵ pi⁵¹ tu̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jœːŋ²¹ t͡sʰœːŋ²¹ pei̯²² tyːn³⁵/

to make best use of one's advantages while avoiding their shortcomings


吃飽沒事幹

ㄔ ㄅㄠˇ ㄇㄟˊ ㄕˋ ㄍㄢˋ

чибао мэй ши гань

/ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩⁵⁵ pɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ meɪ̯³⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ kän⁵¹/

Some foreigners with full bellies and nothing better to do engage in finger-pointing at us. First, China does not export revolution; second, it does not export famine and poverty; and third, it does not mess around with you. So what else is there to say?

2009, Xi Jinping's speech in Mexico (Translation extracted from Reuters)

Yǒuxiē chībǎo le méi shì gàn de wàiguórén, duì wǒmen de shìqíng zhǐshǒuhuàjiǎo. Zhōngguó yī bù shūchū gémìng, èr bù shūchū jī'è hé pínkùn, sān bù qù zhéténg nǐmen, háiyǒu shénme hǎo shuō de?

有些吃飽了沒事幹的外國人，對我們的事情指手劃腳。中國一不輸出革命，二不輸出飢餓和貧困，三不去折騰你們，還有什麼好說的？

有些吃饱了没事干的外国人，对我们的事情指手划脚。中国一不输出革命，二不输出饥饿和贫困，三不去折腾你们，还有什么好说的？


矇混過關

ㄇㄥˊ ㄏㄨㄣˋ ㄍㄨㄛˋ ㄍㄨㄢ

мэнхунь гогуань

/mɤŋ³⁵ xu̯ən⁵¹⁻⁵³ ku̯ɔ⁵¹ ku̯än⁵⁵/

/mɤŋ³⁵ xu̯ən⁵¹⁻⁵³ ku̯ɔ⁵¹ ku̯än⁵⁵/

(derogatory) to slip by; to gloss over one's fault


方方面面

ㄈㄤ ㄈㄤ ㄇㄧㄢˋ ㄇㄧㄢˋ

фанфанмяньмянь

/fɑŋ⁵⁵ fɑŋ⁵⁵ mi̯ɛn⁵¹⁻⁵³ mi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/fɔːŋ⁵⁵ fɔːŋ⁵⁵ miːn²² miːn²²/

/fɑŋ⁵⁵ fɑŋ⁵⁵ mi̯ɛn⁵¹⁻⁵³ mi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/fɔːŋ⁵⁵ fɔːŋ⁵⁵ miːn²² miːn²²/

AABB-type reduplication of 方面 (fāngmiàn).


當打之年

ㄉㄤ ㄉㄚˇ ㄓ ㄋㄧㄢˊ

дандачжинянь

/tɑŋ⁵⁵ tä²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ni̯ɛn³⁵/

/tɑŋ⁵⁵ tä²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ni̯ɛn³⁵/

Originally used to describe martial artists.

one's prime time; one's most active and successful time in life


逆流而上

ㄋㄧˋ ㄌㄧㄡˊ ㄦˊ ㄕㄤˋ

/ni⁵¹ li̯oʊ̯³⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ ʂɑŋ⁵¹/

/jɪk̚² lɐu̯²¹ jiː²¹ sœːŋ¹³/

/ni⁵¹ li̯oʊ̯³⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ ʂɑŋ⁵¹/

/jɪk̚² lɐu̯²¹ jiː²¹ sœːŋ¹³/


花團錦簇

bouquets of flowers and piles of brocades

ㄏㄨㄚ ㄊㄨㄢˊ ㄐㄧㄣˇ ㄘㄨˋ

хуатуаньцзиньцу

/xu̯ä⁵⁵ tʰu̯än³⁵ t͡ɕin²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sʰu⁵¹/

/faː⁵⁵ tʰyːn²¹ kɐm³⁵ t͡sʰʊk̚⁵/

/xu̯ä⁵⁵ tʰu̯än³⁵ t͡ɕin²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sʰu⁵¹/

/faː⁵⁵ tʰyːn²¹ kɐm³⁵ t͡sʰʊk̚⁵/


風口浪尖

where the wind is the strongest and waves are the highest

ㄈㄥ ㄎㄡˇ ㄌㄤˋ ㄐㄧㄢ

фэнкоуланцзянь

/fɤŋ⁵⁵ kʰoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ lɑŋ⁵¹ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵⁵/

/fʊŋ⁵⁵ hɐu̯³⁵ lɔːŋ²² t͡siːm⁵⁵/

/fɤŋ⁵⁵ kʰoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ lɑŋ⁵¹ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵⁵/

/fʊŋ⁵⁵ hɐu̯³⁵ lɔːŋ²² t͡siːm⁵⁵/


富麗堂皇

ㄈㄨˋ ㄌㄧˋ ㄊㄤˊ ㄏㄨㄤˊ

фули танхуан

/fu⁵¹⁻⁵³ li⁵¹ tʰɑŋ³⁵ xu̯ɑŋ³⁵/

/fuː³³ lɐi̯²² tʰɔːŋ²¹ wɔːŋ²¹/

/fu⁵¹⁻⁵³ li⁵¹ tʰɑŋ³⁵ xu̯ɑŋ³⁵/

/fuː³³ lɐi̯²² tʰɔːŋ²¹ wɔːŋ²¹/


揸住雞毛當令箭

/t͡saː⁵⁵ t͡syː²² kɐi̯⁵⁵ mou̯²¹ tɔːŋ³³ lɪŋ²² t͡siːn³³/

(Cantonese) to treat one's superior's casual remarks as an order and to make a big fuss about it


雞毛當令箭

ㄐㄧ ㄇㄠˊ ㄉㄤˋ ㄌㄧㄥˋ ㄐㄧㄢˋ

цзимао дан линцзянь

/t͡ɕi⁵⁵ mɑʊ̯³⁵ tɑŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ liŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/kɐi̯⁵⁵ mou̯²¹ tɔːŋ³³ lɪŋ²² t͡siːn³³/

/kɐi̯⁵⁵ mou̯²¹ tɔːŋ³³ lɪŋ²² t͡siːn³³/


神不知鬼不覺

ㄕㄣˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄓ ㄍㄨㄟˇ ㄅㄨˋ ㄐㄩㄝˊ

шэнь бучжи гуй буцзюэ

/ʂən³⁵ pu⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ku̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu⁵¹ t͡ɕy̯ɛ³⁵/

/sɐn²¹ pɐt̚⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ kʷɐi̯³⁵ pɐt̚⁵ kɔːk̚³/


一失足成千古恨，再回頭已百年身

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一失足成千古恨，再回頭已百年身

一失足成千古恨，再回头已百年身

ㄧ ㄕ ㄗㄨˊ ㄔㄥˊ ㄑㄧㄢ ㄍㄨˇ ㄏㄣˋ

ㄗㄞˋ ㄏㄨㄟˊ ㄊㄡˊ ㄧˇ ㄅㄞˇ ㄋㄧㄢˊ ㄕㄣ

jat¹ sat¹ zuk¹ sing⁴ cin¹ gu² han⁶, zoi³ wui⁴ tau⁴ ji⁵ baak³ nin⁴ san¹

zài huítóu yǐ bǎinián shēn [Phonetic:yìshīzúchéngqiāngǔhèn

и шицзу чэн цяньгу хэнь

цзай хуэйтоу и байнянь шэнь

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡su³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɤŋ³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ku²¹⁴⁻²¹ xən⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡saɪ̯⁵¹ xu̯eɪ̯³⁵ tʰoʊ̯³⁵ i²¹⁴⁻³⁵ paɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ni̯ɛn³⁵ ʂən⁵⁵/

yāt sāt jūk sìhng chīn gú hahn, joi wùih tàuh yíh baak nìhn sān

jat⁷ sat⁷ dzuk⁷ sing⁴ tsin¹ gu² han⁶, dzoi³ wui⁴ tau⁴ ji⁵ baak⁸ nin⁴ san¹

yed¹ sed¹ zug¹ xing⁴ qin¹ gu² hen⁶, zoi³ wui⁴ teo⁴ yi⁵ bag³ nin⁴ sen¹

/jɐt̚⁵ sɐt̚⁵ t͡sʊk̚⁵ sɪŋ²¹ t͡sʰiːn⁵⁵ kuː³⁵ hɐn²² t͡sɔːi̯³³ wuːi̯²¹ tʰɐu̯²¹ jiː¹³ paːk̚³ niːn²¹ sɐn⁵⁵/

一失足成千古恨 一失足成千古恨#Chinese

Synonym of 一失足成千古恨 (yī shīzú chéng qiāngǔ hèn)


雲開日出

ㄩㄣˊ ㄎㄞ ㄖˋ ㄔㄨ

/yn³⁵ kʰaɪ̯⁵⁵ ʐ̩⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵⁵/

/yn³⁵ kʰaɪ̯⁵⁵ ʐ̩⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵⁵/


不見兔子不撒鷹

Don't release the falcon (to hunt) if you can't spot a hare

ㄅㄨˋ ㄐㄧㄢˋ ㄊㄨˋ ˙ㄗ ㄅㄨˋ ㄙㄚ ㄧㄥ

bùjiàn tùzi bù sā yīng [Phonetic:bújiàn tùzi bù sā yīng]

буцзянь туцзы бу са ин

/pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰu⁵¹ d͡z̥z̩¹ pu⁵¹ sä⁵⁵ iŋ⁵⁵/

/pɐt̚⁵ kiːn³³ tʰou̯³³ t͡siː³⁵ pɐt̚⁵ saːt̚³ jɪŋ⁵⁵/

don't rush to take actions until you've made your objective clear


八字沒一撇

ㄅㄚ ㄗˋ ㄇㄟˊ ㄧ ㄆㄧㄝˇ

bāzì méi yī piě [Phonetic:bāzì méi yì piě]

бацзы мэй и пе

/pä⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹ meɪ̯³⁵ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ pʰi̯ɛ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

ㄅㄚ ㄗˋ ㄇㄟˊ ㄧ ㄆㄧㄝˇㄦ

бацзымэйипер

/pä⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹ meɪ̯³⁵ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ pʰi̯ɛɻ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/paːt̚³ t͡siː²² muːt̚² jɐt̚⁵ pʰiːt̚³/

/paːt̚³ t͡siː²² muːt̚² jɐt̚⁵ pʰiːt̚³/

八字還沒一撇 八字還沒一撇#Chinese

八字还没一撇 八字还没一撇#Chinese

Synonym of 八字還沒一撇／八字还没一撇 (bāzì hái méi yī piě)


笑到面黃

to laugh so hard that one's face becomes yellow

/siːu̯³³ tou̯³³ miːn²² wɔːŋ²¹/

/siːu̯³³ tou̯³³ miːn²² wɔːŋ²¹/

(Cantonese) to laugh at (someone or something) really hard; to mock heavily


滾水淥豬腸

/kʷɐn³⁵ sɵy̯³⁵ lʊk̚² t͡syː⁵⁵ t͡sʰœːŋ²¹⁻³⁵/

A piece of pork intestine shrinks on both sides when it is cooked with boiling water, and is used as a metaphor for decrease in income and expense.

a pig intestine cooked with boiling water

(Cantonese) the situation when someone has to control his/her expenses due to decrease in income


眼大肚子小

ㄧㄢˇ ㄉㄚˋ ㄉㄨˋ ˙ㄗ ㄒㄧㄠˇ

янь да дуцзы сяо

/jɛn²¹⁴⁻²¹ tä⁵¹⁻⁵³ tu⁵¹ d͡z̥z̩¹ ɕi̯ɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/ŋaːn¹³ taːi̯²² tʰou̯¹³ t͡siː³⁵ siːu̯³⁵/

have eyes bigger than one's stomach
have eyes bigger than one's stomach

(idiomatic) to have eyes bigger than one's stomach; to take more food than one can eat


以身相許

ㄧˇ ㄕㄣ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄒㄩˇ

/i²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂən⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ɕy²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jiː¹³ sɐn⁵⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵ hɵy̯³⁵/

/i²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂən⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ɕy²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jiː¹³ sɐn⁵⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵ hɵy̯³⁵/


令行禁止

ㄌㄧㄥˋ ㄒㄧㄥˊ ㄐㄧㄣˋ ㄓˇ

линсинцзиньчжи

/liŋ⁵¹ ɕiŋ³⁵ t͡ɕin⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/lɪŋ²² hɐŋ²¹ kɐm³³ t͡siː³⁵/

/liŋ⁵¹ ɕiŋ³⁵ t͡ɕin⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/lɪŋ²² hɐŋ²¹ kɐm³³ t͡siː³⁵/

If there is an order, carry it out. If there is a prohibition on something, stop doing it. Wherever the laws and customs reach should [accept and abide by them,] just like how one's organs follow their heart, which is what politicians expect.

Lìng zé xíng, jìn zé zhǐ. Xiàn zhī suǒjí, sú zhī suǒ bèi, rú bǎitǐ zhī cóng xīn, zhèng zhī suǒ qī yě.

令則行，禁則止。憲之所及，俗之所被，如百體之從心，政之所期也。

令则行，禁则止。宪之所及，俗之所被，如百体之从心，政之所期也。

to carry out orders and proclaim prohibitions; to abide by orders


身輕如燕

ㄕㄣ ㄑㄧㄥ ㄖㄨˊ ㄧㄢˋ

шэньцинжуянь

/ʂən⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰiŋ⁵⁵ ʐu³⁵ jɛn⁵¹/

/sɐn⁵⁵ hɪŋ⁵⁵ jyː²¹ jiːn³³/

/ʂən⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰiŋ⁵⁵ ʐu³⁵ jɛn⁵¹/

/sɐn⁵⁵ hɪŋ⁵⁵ jyː²¹ jiːn³³/


緩兵之計

ㄏㄨㄢˇ ㄅㄧㄥ ㄓ ㄐㄧˋ

хуаньбинчжицзи

/xu̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹ piŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡ɕi⁵¹/

/wuːn²² pɪŋ⁵⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ kɐi̯³³/

/uan²²⁻²¹ piɪŋ⁴⁴⁻²² t͡si⁴⁴⁻²² ke²¹/

/uan⁴¹⁻²² piɪŋ³³ t͡si³³ ke⁴¹/

/uan²²⁻²¹ piɪŋ⁴⁴⁻²² t͡si⁴⁴⁻²² ke²¹/

/uan³³⁻¹¹ piɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡si⁴⁴⁻³³ ke¹¹/

/uan³³⁻²¹ piɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡si⁴⁴⁻³³ ke²¹/

/xu̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹ piŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡ɕi⁵¹/

/wuːn²² pɪŋ⁵⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ kɐi̯³³/

/uan²²⁻²¹ piɪŋ⁴⁴⁻²² t͡si⁴⁴⁻²² ke²¹/

/uan⁴¹⁻²² piɪŋ³³ t͡si³³ ke⁴¹/

/uan²²⁻²¹ piɪŋ⁴⁴⁻²² t͡si⁴⁴⁻²² ke²¹/

/uan³³⁻¹¹ piɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡si⁴⁴⁻³³ ke¹¹/

/uan³³⁻²¹ piɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡si⁴⁴⁻³³ ke²¹/


趁佢病，攞佢命

to take his/her life when he/she is sick

/t͡sʰɐn³³ kʰɵy̯¹³ pɛːŋ²² lɔː³⁵ kʰɵy̯¹³ mɛːŋ²²/

(Cantonese) to take advantage when someone is in plight or difficulty


如釋重負

ㄖㄨˊ ㄕˋ ㄓㄨㄥˋ ㄈㄨˋ

/ʐu³⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ fu⁵¹/

/jyː²¹ sɪk̚⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ¹³ fuː²²/

/lu²⁴⁻²² siɪk̚³²⁻⁴ tiɔŋ²²⁻²¹ hu²²/

/zu²³⁻³³ siɪk̚³²⁻⁴ tiɔŋ³³⁻²¹ hu³³/

/zi²³⁻³³ siɪk̚³²⁻⁴ tiɔŋ³³⁻²¹ hu³³/

/ʐu³⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ fu⁵¹/

/jyː²¹ sɪk̚⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ¹³ fuː²²/

/lu²⁴⁻²² siɪk̚³²⁻⁴ tiɔŋ²²⁻²¹ hu²²/

/zu²³⁻³³ siɪk̚³²⁻⁴ tiɔŋ³³⁻²¹ hu³³/

/zi²³⁻³³ siɪk̚³²⁻⁴ tiɔŋ³³⁻²¹ hu³³/

to feel as if a weight has been lifted from one’s shoulders


變化無常

ㄅㄧㄢˋ ㄏㄨㄚˋ ㄨˊ ㄔㄤˊ

/pi̯ɛn⁵¹⁻⁵³ xu̯ä⁵¹ u³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ³⁵/

/piːn³³ faː³³ mou̯²¹ sœːŋ²¹/

/pi̯ɛn⁵¹⁻⁵³ xu̯ä⁵¹ u³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ³⁵/

/piːn³³ faː³³ mou̯²¹ sœːŋ²¹/

The weather here is fickle; just now, it was clear skies for miles, but now it's already densely covered in birds and clouds.

Zhè'ér de tiānqì biànhuàwúcháng, gāngcái háishì qīngkōng wànlǐ, xiànzài què yǐjīng niǎo yún mìbù le.

這兒的天氣變化無常，剛才還是清空萬里，現在卻已經鳥雲密佈了。

这儿的天气变化无常，刚才还是清空万里，现在却已经鸟云密布了。


做盛行

/t͡sou̯²² sɪŋ²² hɔːŋ²¹/

/t͡sou̯²² sɪŋ²² hɔːŋ²¹/

Shortened from earlier 做乜盛行 as attested in Cantonese Made Easy (1907). 盛 is an honorific adjective as contrasted to the humble term 敝行.

May I ask what do you do for a living, sir?

ceng² man⁶ sin¹ saang¹ zou⁶ sing⁶ hong⁴ aa³?

請問先生做盛行呀？

请问先生做盛行呀？

(Cantonese, honorific) what's your job; what do you do for a living


徛懸山看馬相踢

to stand on a high mountain to watch the horses kicking each other

/kʰia³³⁻¹¹ kuãi²⁴⁻¹¹ suã⁴⁴ kʰuã¹¹⁻⁵³ be⁵³ sio⁴⁴⁻³³ tʰat̚³²/

/kʰia³³⁻²¹ kuan²³⁻³³ suã⁴⁴ kʰuã²¹⁻⁴¹ be⁴¹ siɤ⁴⁴⁻³³ tʰat̚³²/

(Hokkien, figuratively) to watch in safety while others fight, then reaping the spoils when both sides suffer.


讚口不絕

ㄗㄢˋ ㄎㄡˇ ㄅㄨˋ ㄐㄩㄝˊ

цзанькоубуцзюэ

/t͡sän⁵¹ kʰoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu⁵¹ t͡ɕy̯ɛ³⁵/

/t͡saːn³³ hɐu̯³⁵ pɐt̚⁵ t͡syːt̚²/

/t͡san²¹⁻⁵³ kʰau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁴ t͡suat̚⁴/

/t͡san⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ kʰau⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ put̚⁵⁻²⁴ t͡suat̚²⁴/

/t͡san²¹⁻⁵³ kʰau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁵ t͡suat̚¹²¹/

/t͡san¹¹⁻⁵³ kʰau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁴ t͡suat̚⁴/

/t͡san²¹⁻⁴¹ kʰau⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁴ t͡suat̚⁴/

/t͡sän⁵¹ kʰoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu⁵¹ t͡ɕy̯ɛ³⁵/

/t͡saːn³³ hɐu̯³⁵ pɐt̚⁵ t͡syːt̚²/

讚不絕口 讚不絕口#Chinese

赞不绝口 赞不绝口#Chinese

(nonstandard) Alternative form of 讚不絕口／赞不绝口 (zànbùjuékǒu)


龜跤趖出來

(Hokkien) to give oneself away; to unintentionally reveal hidden information


嘢可以亂食，說話唔可以亂講

嘢可以亂食，說話唔可以亂講

嘢可以乱食，说话唔可以乱讲
嘢可以亂食，説話唔可以亂講

food could be eaten haphazardly, [but] words cannot be spoken haphazardly

je⁵ ho² ji⁵ lyun⁶⁻² sik⁶, syut³ waa⁶ m⁴ ho² ji⁵ lyun⁶⁻² gong²

yéh hó yíh lyún sihk, syut wah m̀h hó yíh lyún góng

je⁵ ho² ji⁵ lyn⁶⁻² sik⁹, syt⁸ waa⁶ m⁴ ho² ji⁵ lyn⁶⁻² gong²

yé⁵ ho² yi⁵ lün⁶⁻² xig⁶, xud³ wa⁶ m⁴ ho² yi⁵ lün⁶⁻² gong²

/jɛː¹³ hɔː³⁵ jiː¹³ lyːn²²⁻³⁵ sɪk̚² syːt̚³ waː²² m̩²¹ hɔː³⁵ jiː¹³ lyːn²²⁻³⁵ kɔːŋ³⁵/

(Cantonese) Used to tell someone to be careful of one's words.


狗衝

/kɐu̯³⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵/

/kɐu̯³⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵/

(Hong Kong Cantonese, slang) to rush crazily (for something)


𣍐曉駛船嫌溪狹

袂曉駛船嫌溪狹
𣍐曉駛船嫌溪窄
𫧃晓驶船嫌溪狭

blame the river for being too narrow when one is unable to sail a boat

/bue²²⁻²¹ hiau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ sai⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡sun²⁴ hiam²⁴⁻²² kʰue⁴⁴ ueʔ⁴/

/be³³⁻¹¹ hiau⁵³⁻⁵⁵ sai⁵³⁻⁵⁵ t͡sun²⁴ hiam²⁴⁻³³ kʰe⁴⁴ eʔ⁴/

/be²²⁻²¹ hiau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ sai⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡sun¹³ hiam¹³⁻²² kʰe⁴⁴ eʔ¹²¹/

a bad workman always blames his tools
a bad workman always blames his tools

(Hokkien) to always blame others upon failure rather than reflecting on oneself; a bad workman always blames his tools


舌劍唇槍

ㄕㄜˊ ㄐㄧㄢˋ ㄔㄨㄣˊ ㄑㄧㄤ

шэцзяньчуньцян

/ʂɤ³⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵/

/ʂɤ³⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵/


客客氣氣

ㄎㄜˋ ㄎㄜˋ ㄑㄧˋ ㄑㄧˋ

/kʰɤ⁵¹⁻⁵³ kʰɤ⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹/

/kʰɤ⁵¹⁻⁵³ kʰɤ⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹/

AABB-type reduplication of 客氣／客气 (kèqi).

zh-l

客氣／客气 (kèqi)


唇槍舌劍

ㄔㄨㄣˊ ㄑㄧㄤ ㄕㄜˊ ㄐㄧㄢˋ

чуньцяншэцзянь

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʂɤ³⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/sɵn²¹ t͡sʰœːŋ⁵⁵ siːt̚² kiːm³³/

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʂɤ³⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/sɵn²¹ t͡sʰœːŋ⁵⁵ siːt̚² kiːm³³/


比上不足，比下有餘

ㄅㄧˇ ㄕㄤˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄗㄨˊ

ㄅㄧˇ ㄒㄧㄚˋ ㄧㄡˇ ㄩˊ

bei² soeng⁶ bat¹ zuk¹, bei² haa⁶ jau⁵ jyu⁴

би шан буцзу

/pi²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂɑŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ t͡su³⁵ pi²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi̯ä⁵¹ joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ y³⁵/

bei² soeng⁶ bat⁷ dzuk⁷, bei² haa⁶ jau⁵ jy⁴

/pei̯³⁵ sœːŋ²² pɐt̚⁵ t͡sʊk̚⁵ pei̯³⁵ haː²² jɐu̯¹³ jyː²¹/

not as good as the best ones, but better than the worst ones


揭不開鍋

ㄐㄧㄝ ㄅㄨˋ ㄎㄞ ㄍㄨㄛ

ㄐㄧㄝ ˙ㄅㄨ ㄎㄞ ㄍㄨㄛ

/t͡ɕi̯ɛ⁵⁵ pu⁵¹ kʰaɪ̯⁵⁵ ku̯ɔ⁵⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛ⁵⁵ b̥u² kʰaɪ̯⁵⁵ ku̯ɔ⁵⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛ⁵⁵ pu⁵¹ kʰaɪ̯⁵⁵ ku̯ɔ⁵⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛ⁵⁵ b̥u² kʰaɪ̯⁵⁵ ku̯ɔ⁵⁵/


有事鍾無豔，無事夏迎春

ㄧㄡˇ ㄕˋ ㄓㄨㄥ ㄨˊ ㄧㄢˋ

ㄨˊ ㄕˋ ㄒㄧㄚˋ ㄧㄥˊ ㄔㄨㄣ

jau⁵ si⁶ zung¹ mou⁴ jim⁶, mou⁴ si⁶ haa⁶ jing⁴ ceon¹

юши Чжун Уянь

уши Ся Инчунь

/joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂʐ̩⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵ u³⁵ jɛn⁵¹ u³⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ ɕi̯ä⁵¹ iŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən⁵⁵/

yáuh sih jūng mòuh yihm, mòuh sih hah yìhng chēun

jau⁵ si⁶ dzung¹ mou⁴ jim⁶, mou⁴ si⁶ haa⁶ jing⁴ tsoen¹

yeo⁵ xi⁶ zung¹ mou⁴ yim⁶, mou⁴ xi⁶ ha⁶ ying⁴ cên¹

/jɐu̯¹³ siː²² t͡sʊŋ⁵⁵ mou̯²¹ jiːm²² mou̯²¹ siː²² haː²² jɪŋ²¹ t͡sʰɵn⁵⁵/

Zhongli Chun, also known as Zhong Wuyan, was the queen consort of King Xuan of Qi who was talented and famous for her ugliness. She once saved the country by offering the king advice that encouraged him to start reforms.
Xia Yingchun was a fictional character in folk tales who was said to be a concubine of King Xuan and was very beautiful but with little talent. It was said that when King Xuan has troubles, he would seek for Zhongli Chun. On the contrary, when he was free, he would play with Xia Yingchun instead.

有事鍾無艷，無事夏迎春
有事钟无艳，无事夏迎春
有事锺无艳，无事夏迎春

reach Zhong Wuyan when there is trouble, reach Xia Yingchun when there is nothing to do

Someone only reaches his/her friend when the friend is advantageous.


櫛比鱗次

ㄓˋ ㄅㄧˇ ㄌㄧㄣˊ ㄘˋ

ㄐㄧㄝˊ ㄅㄧˋ ㄌㄧㄣˊ ㄘˋ

/ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵¹ pi²¹⁴⁻²¹ lin³⁵ t͡sʰz̩⁵¹/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pi⁵¹ lin³⁵ t͡sʰz̩⁵¹/

/t͡siːt̚³ pei̯³³ lɵn²¹ t͡sʰiː³³/

/ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵¹ pi²¹⁴⁻²¹ lin³⁵ t͡sʰz̩⁵¹/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pi⁵¹ lin³⁵ t͡sʰz̩⁵¹/

/t͡siːt̚³ pei̯³³ lɵn²¹ t͡sʰiː³³/

鱗次櫛比 鱗次櫛比#Chinese

鳞次栉比 鳞次栉比#Chinese


欲食毋振動

/be(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ t͡siaʔ⁴ m̩³³⁻¹¹ tin⁵³⁻⁴⁴ taŋ³³/

/be(ʔ)³²⁻⁴¹ t͡siaʔ⁴ m̩³³⁻²¹ tin⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ taŋ³³/

/be(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ t͡siaʔ⁴ m̩²²⁻²¹ tin⁵³⁻⁴⁴ taŋ²²/

/bue(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ t͡siaʔ¹²¹ m̩²²⁻²¹ tin⁵³⁻⁴⁴ taŋ²²/

/bə(ʔ)⁵ t͡siaʔ²⁴ m̩⁴¹⁻²² tin⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ taŋ²²/

(Hokkien) to be averse to work; to be piggish


死唔眼閉

/sei̯³⁵ m̩²¹ ŋaːn¹³ pɐi̯³³/

/sei̯³⁵ m̩²¹ ŋaːn¹³ pɐi̯³³/

(Cantonese) to die with a grievance or regret


呈尋磨鉸叉燒包，老鼠唔食豆沙包

head

呈尋磨鉸叉燒包，老鼠唔食豆沙包

呈寻磨铰叉烧包，老鼠唔食豆沙包

cing¹ cam¹ mo⁴ gaau³ caa¹ siu¹ baau¹, lou⁵ syu² m⁴ sik⁶ dau⁶ saa¹ baau¹

chīng chām mòh gaau chā sīu bāau, lóuh syú m̀h sihk dauh sā bāau

tsing¹ tsam¹ mo⁴ gaau³ tsaa¹ siu¹ baau¹, lou⁵ sy² m⁴ sik⁹ dau⁶ saa¹ baau¹

qing¹ cem¹ mo⁴ gao³ ca¹ xiu¹ bao¹, lou⁵ xu² m⁴ xig⁶ deo⁶ sa¹ bao¹

/t͡sʰɪŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰɐm⁵⁵ mɔː²¹ kaːu̯³³ t͡sʰaː⁵⁵ siːu̯⁵⁵ paːu̯⁵⁵ lou̯¹³ syː³⁵ m̩²¹ sɪk̚² tɐu̯²² saː⁵⁵ paːu̯⁵⁵/

rock paper scissors
rock paper scissors#English

(Cantonese) phrase used in rock paper scissors


塘水滾塘魚

[there is nothing but] water in a pond with fish in a pond

/tʰɔːŋ²¹ suːi̯³⁵ kʷɐn³⁵ tʰɔːŋ²¹ jyː²¹⁻³⁵/

(Cantonese, figurative) everything is in a closed market or a small coterie


你老味

néi⁵ lou⁵ méi⁶⁻²

/nei̯¹³ lou̯¹³ mei̯²²⁻³⁵/

/nei̯¹³ lou̯¹³ mei̯²²⁻³⁵/

Clipping of 屌你老味 (diu² nei⁵ lou⁵ mei⁶⁻²).


丈二和尚摸不著頭腦

丈二和尚摸不着头脑
丈二和尚摸不着頭腦

a 1.2 zhang-tall Buddhist monk - cannot touch his head

ㄓㄤˋ ㄦˋ ㄏㄜˊ ㄕㄤˋ ㄇㄛ ㄅㄨˋ ㄓㄠˊ ㄊㄡˊ ㄋㄠˇ

chang⁴ êrh⁴ ho²-shang⁴ mo¹ pu⁴ chao² tʻou²-nao³

чжан эр хэшан мо бу чжао тоунао

/ʈ͡ʂɑŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ˀɤɻ⁵¹ xɤ³⁵ ʂɑŋ⁵¹ mu̯ɔ⁵⁵ pu⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯³⁵ tʰoʊ̯³⁵ nɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

make head or tail of
make head or tail of

to be unable make head or tail of something; to have no clue; to be confused


丈八金剛摸不著頭腦

丈八金刚摸不着头脑
丈八金剛摸不着頭腦

a 1.8 zhang-tall vajrapani - cannot touch his head

ㄓㄤˋ ㄅㄚ ㄐㄧㄣ ㄍㄤ ㄇㄛ ㄅㄨˋ ㄓㄠˊ ㄊㄡˊ ㄋㄠˇ

chang⁴ pa¹ chin¹-kang¹ mo¹ pu⁴ chao² tʻou²-nao³

чжан ба цзиньган мо бу чжао тоунао

/ʈ͡ʂɑŋ⁵¹ pä⁵⁵ t͡ɕin⁵⁵ kɑŋ⁵⁵ mu̯ɔ⁵⁵ pu⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯³⁵ tʰoʊ̯³⁵ nɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

丈二和尚摸不著頭腦 丈二和尚摸不著頭腦#Chinese

丈二和尚摸不著头脑 丈二和尚摸不著头脑#Chinese

Synonym of 丈二和尚摸不著頭腦／丈二和尚摸不著头脑 (zhàng èr héshàng mō bù zháo tóunǎo, “丈二和尚摸不着头脑”)


收收埋埋

/sɐu̯⁵⁵ sɐu̯⁵⁵ maːi̯²¹ maːi̯²¹/

/sɐu̯⁵⁵ sɐu̯⁵⁵ maːi̯²¹ maːi̯²¹/

(Cantonese) to be secretive; to attempt to cover something up or hide away


畀個官你做

/pei̯³⁵ kɔː³³ kuːn⁵⁵ nei̯¹³ t͡sou̯²²/

/pei̯³⁵ kɔː³³ kuːn⁵⁵ nei̯¹³ t͡sou̯²²/

"Leave it next time!" "Next time would be too late!"

“haa⁶ ci³ sin¹ laa¹!” “haa⁶ ci³ bei² go³ gun¹ nei⁵ zou⁶!”

「下次先啦！」「下次畀個官你做！」

「下次先啦！」「下次畀个官你做！」

(Cantonese, idiomatic) Used as a reply to express disdain for someone's promise that someone doesn't seem to keep or will be too late.


自己知自己事

ㄗˋ ㄐㄧˇ ㄓ ㄗˋ ㄐㄧˇ ㄕˋ

цзыцзи чжи цзыцзи ши

/t͡sz̩⁵¹ t͡ɕi²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹ t͡ɕi²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

/t͡siː²² kei̯³⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ t͡siː²² kei̯³⁵ siː²²/


天差地遠

ㄊㄧㄢ ㄔㄚ ㄉㄧˋ ㄩㄢˇ

тяньчадиюань

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵ ti⁵¹ ɥɛn²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ t͡sʰaː⁵⁵ tei̯²² jyːn¹³/

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵ ti⁵¹ ɥɛn²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ t͡sʰaː⁵⁵ tei̯²² jyːn¹³/

to be completely different; to be poles apart


塗炭生靈

ㄊㄨˊ ㄊㄢˋ ㄕㄥ ㄌㄧㄥˊ

тутаньшэнлин

/tʰu³⁵ tʰän⁵¹ ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ liŋ³⁵/

/tʰou̯²¹ tʰaːn³³ sɐŋ⁵⁵ lɪŋ²¹/

/tʰu³⁵ tʰän⁵¹ ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ liŋ³⁵/

/tʰou̯²¹ tʰaːn³³ sɐŋ⁵⁵ lɪŋ²¹/

ngo⁵ zi¹ coeng¹ bun² sing³ sin⁶ loeng⁴ ga¹ maa³, zeoi³ paa³ zau⁶ hai⁶ lok⁶ hai² di¹ waai⁶ hok⁶ saang¹ ge³ sau² soeng⁶, go² zan⁶ si⁴ zau⁶ wui⁵ laam⁵ saat³ mou⁴ gu¹, tou⁴ taan³ sang¹ leng⁴ laak³.

我支槍本性善良㗎嘛，最怕就係落喺啲壞學生嘅手上，嗰陣時就會濫殺無辜，塗炭生靈嘞。

我支枪本性善良㗎嘛，最怕就系落喺啲坏学生嘅手上，嗰阵时就会滥杀无辜，涂炭生灵嘞。

生靈塗炭 生靈塗炭#Chinese

生灵涂炭 生灵涂炭#Chinese


假以時日

ㄐㄧㄚˇ ㄧˇ ㄕˊ ㄖˋ

/t͡ɕi̯ä²¹⁴⁻³⁵ i²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵ ʐ̩⁵¹/

/kaː³⁵ jiː¹³ siː²¹ jɐt̚²/

/ka⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ i⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ si²³⁻³³ zit̚⁴/

/t͡ɕi̯ä²¹⁴⁻³⁵ i²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵ ʐ̩⁵¹/

/kaː³⁵ jiː¹³ siː²¹ jɐt̚²/

/ka⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ i⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ si²³⁻³³ zit̚⁴/


近廟欺神

to live near the temple but cheat the god

/kin³³⁻¹¹ bio³³⁻¹¹ kʰi⁴⁴⁻³³ sin²⁴/

/kin³³⁻²¹ biɤ³³⁻²¹ kʰi⁴⁴⁻³³ sin²³/

/kun³³⁻¹¹ bio³³⁻¹¹ kʰi⁴⁴⁻³³ sin²⁴/

/kun³³⁻²¹ biɤ³³⁻²¹ kʰi⁴⁴⁻³³ sin²³/

/kin³³⁻¹¹ bio³³⁻¹¹ kʰi⁴⁴⁻³³ sin²⁴/

/kin³³⁻²¹ biɤ³³⁻²¹ kʰi⁴⁴⁻³³ sin²³/

/kun³³⁻¹¹ bio³³⁻¹¹ kʰi⁴⁴⁻³³ sin²⁴/

/kun³³⁻²¹ biɤ³³⁻²¹ kʰi⁴⁴⁻³³ sin²³/

(Taiwanese Hokkien) to look down upon people that are close to someone


揚名立萬

ㄧㄤˊ ㄇㄧㄥˊ ㄌㄧˋ ㄨㄢˋ

/jɑŋ³⁵ miŋ³⁵ li⁵¹⁻⁵³ wän⁵¹/

/jœːŋ²¹ mɪŋ²¹ laːp̚² maːn²²/

/jɑŋ³⁵ miŋ³⁵ li⁵¹⁻⁵³ wän⁵¹/

/jœːŋ²¹ mɪŋ²¹ laːp̚² maːn²²/

萬 / 蔓 (wàn), whose pronunciation is the colloquial reading of 蔓, is an argot meaning "surname". (Sun, 2006; Cai and Li, 2016)

make a name for oneself
make a name for oneself

literary and colloquial readings of Chinese characters


𪘲牙聳䚗

依牙鬆槓
醫牙鬆鋼
E牙鬆鋼
𬺌牙耸䚗

/jiː⁵⁵ ŋaː²¹ sʊŋ⁵⁵ kɔːŋ³³/

/jiː⁵⁵ ŋaː²¹ sʊŋ⁵⁵ kɔːŋ³³/

Don't be a back-seat driver when watching a chess or mahjong game (literally, "spectators should not make any facial expressions or give any gestures [to the players]")

pong⁴ gun¹ ze² bat¹ dak¹ ji¹ ngaa⁴ sung¹ gong³

旁觀者不得𪘲牙聳䚗

旁观者不得𬺌牙耸䚗

(Cantonese) to do exaggerated actions or facial expressions (so as to complain about something)


似懂非懂

toseem to understand, but not to understand

ㄙˋ ㄉㄨㄥˇ ㄈㄟ ㄉㄨㄥˇ

/sz̩⁵¹ tʊŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ feɪ̯⁵⁵ tʊŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰiː¹³ tʊŋ³⁵ fei̯⁵⁵ tʊŋ³⁵/

/sz̩⁵¹ tʊŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ feɪ̯⁵⁵ tʊŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰiː¹³ tʊŋ³⁵ fei̯⁵⁵ tʊŋ³⁵/

to not really understand; to half-understand


りしれ供さ小

/li⁵³ si³³ te(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ kɔŋ⁵³⁻⁴⁴ siã⁵³⁻⁴⁴ siau²⁴/

/li⁴¹ si³³ te(ʔ)³²⁻⁴¹ kɔŋ⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ siã⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ siau²³/

/li⁵³ si³³ le(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ kɔŋ⁵³⁻⁴⁴ siã⁵³⁻⁴⁴ siau²⁴/

/li⁴¹ si³³ le(ʔ)³²⁻⁴¹ kɔŋ⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ siã⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ siau²³/

/li⁵³ si³³ le(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ kɔŋ⁵³⁻⁴⁴ sã⁵³⁻⁴⁴ siau²⁴/

/li⁴¹ si³³ le(ʔ)³²⁻⁴¹ kɔŋ⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ sã⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ siau²³/

Pseudo-Japonism of the original phrase; the hiragana is pronounced as in Japanese, but the kanji are read as Mandarin.

(Taiwanese Hokkien, Internet slang) Alternative form of 你是咧講啥潲／你是咧讲啥潲 (“What the fuck are you saying?”)


按在地上摩擦

ㄢˋ ㄗㄞˋ ㄉㄧˋ ˙ㄕㄤ ㄇㄛˊ ㄘㄚ

ань цзай дишан моца

/ˀän⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡saɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ ti⁵¹ ʂɑŋ¹ mu̯ɔ³⁵ t͡sʰä⁵⁵/

(figurative, neologism, slang) to completely dominate over (the opponent)


朝發夕至

ㄓㄠ ㄈㄚ ㄒㄧˋ ㄓˋ

/ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯⁵⁵ fä⁵⁵ ɕi⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

/ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯⁵⁵ fä⁵⁵ ɕi⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

/ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯⁵⁵ fä⁵⁵ ɕi⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

/ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯⁵⁵ fä⁵⁵ ɕi⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

to set out in the morning and arrive in the evening


公親變事主

ㄍㄨㄥ ㄑㄧㄣ ㄅㄧㄢˋ ㄕˋ ㄓㄨˇ

гунцинь бянь шичжу

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰin⁵⁵ pi̯ɛn⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰin⁴⁴⁻³³ piɛn¹¹⁻⁵³ su³³⁻¹¹ t͡su⁵³/

/kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰin⁴⁴⁻³³ piɛn²¹⁻⁴¹ su³³⁻²¹ t͡su⁴¹/

Be careful not to get yourself involved while negotiating between parties.

Lí tio̍h sè-jī, m̄-thang kong-chhin-piàn-sū-chú.

你著細膩，毋通公親變事主。

你著细腻，毋通公亲变事主。


戴罪立功

ㄉㄞˋ ㄗㄨㄟˋ ㄌㄧˋ ㄍㄨㄥ

дайцзуйлигун

/taɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡su̯eɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ li⁵¹ kʊŋ⁵⁵/

/taːi̯³³ t͡sɵy̯²² laːp̚² kʊŋ⁵⁵/

/taɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡su̯eɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ li⁵¹ kʊŋ⁵⁵/

/taːi̯³³ t͡sɵy̯²² laːp̚² kʊŋ⁵⁵/

to atone for one's crimes or mistakes by making contributions; to redeem oneself


獅子開大口

/siː⁵⁵ t͡siː³⁵ hɔːi̯⁵⁵ taːi̯²² hɐu̯³⁵/

/siː⁵⁵ t͡siː³⁵ hɔːi̯⁵⁵ taːi̯²² hɐu̯³⁵/

(Cantonese, figurative) to ask for an unjustly large amount of money and/or goods


乞兒兜度揦飯食

乞儿兜度揦饭食
乞兒兜度嗱飯食
乞兒兜道揦飯食
乞兒兜道嗱飯食

to take rice from a beggar's bowl for one's consumption

/hɐt̚⁵ jiː²¹⁻⁵⁵ tɐu̯⁵⁵ tou̯²² laː³⁵ faːn²² sɪk̚²/


舉目無親

ㄐㄩˇ ㄇㄨˋ ㄨˊ ㄑㄧㄣ

/t͡ɕy²¹⁴⁻²¹ mu⁵¹ u³⁵ t͡ɕʰin⁵⁵/

/kɵy̯³⁵ mʊk̚² mou̯²¹ t͡sʰɐn⁵⁵/

/t͡ɕy²¹⁴⁻²¹ mu⁵¹ u³⁵ t͡ɕʰin⁵⁵/

/kɵy̯³⁵ mʊk̚² mou̯²¹ t͡sʰɐn⁵⁵/

to be a lonely stranger in a strange land with no one to depend on


沙頭角村長個女——你愛

saa¹ tau⁴ gok⁸ tsyn¹ dzoeng² go³ noey⁵⁻²

/saː⁵⁵ tʰɐu̯²¹ kɔːk̚³ t͡sʰyːn⁵⁵ t͡sœːŋ³⁵ kɔː³³ nɵy̯¹³⁻³⁵ nei̯¹³ ɔːi̯³³/

Named after a leader of Yim Liu Ha Village in Sha Tau Kok, Hong Kong in 1960s called 李愛／李爱 (lei5 oi3), which is near-homophonous to 你愛／你爱 (nei5 oi3, “you take it”). The name was mistaken as his daughter's since it sounds feminine.

沙头角村长个女——你爱
沙頭角村長個女——李愛

the daugher of Sha Tau Kok Village's leader - Lee Oi (you take it)

(Hong Kong Cantonese, dated) Used to describe something that no one wants.


大家噉話

/taːi̯²² kaː⁵⁵ kɐm³⁵ waː²²/

/taːi̯²² kaː⁵⁵ kɐm³⁵ waː²²/


等埋發叔

/tɐŋ³⁵ maːi̯²¹ faːt̚³ sʊk̚⁵/

/tɐŋ³⁵ maːi̯²¹ faːt̚³ sʊk̚⁵/

(Hong Kong Cantonese, neologism) Used as an excuse for being late.


實食冇黐牙

/sɐt̚² sɪk̚² mou̯¹³ t͡sʰiː⁵⁵ ŋaː²¹/

/sɐt̚² sɪk̚² mou̯¹³ t͡sʰiː⁵⁵ ŋaː²¹/


維民所止

ㄨㄟˊ ㄇㄧㄣˊ ㄙㄨㄛˇ ㄓˇ

вэйминьсочжи

/weɪ̯³⁵ min³⁵ su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/wɐi̯²¹ mɐn²¹ sɔː³⁵ t͡siː³⁵/

/wɐi̯²¹ mɐn²¹ sɔː³⁵ t͡siː³⁵/

Classic of Poetry
Jin Yong
imperial examination
zh:查嗣庭

From the Classic of Poetry, poem 303 (《詩經·商頌·玄鳥》):
:
The sense of censorship is from a legend of the Qing scholar Zha Siting (查嗣庭), a distant relative of the novelist Louis Cha a.k.a. Jin Yong. It was said that he quoted the sentence above for a question in the imperial examination and was then imprisoned because 維／维 (wéi) and 止 (zhǐ) looked like the beheaded form of 雍正 (Yōngzhèng), who was the reigning emperor at that time.

lang

(《詩經·商頌·玄鳥》)

(《詩經·商頌·玄鳥》)

The royal domain of a thousand li, is where the people rest; But there commence the boundaries that reach to the four seas.

The Classic of Poetry, c. 11ᵗʰ – 7ᵗʰ centuries BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

Bāngjī qiānlǐ, wéi mín suǒ zhǐ, zhào yù bǐ sìhǎi.

邦畿千里，維民所止，肇域彼四海。

邦畿千里，维民所止，肇域彼四海。

(original meaning) is where the people reside

A phrase used to satirize censorship of speech.


得閒死唔得閒病

得閑死唔得閑病
得闲死唔得闲病

to have time for death but have not time for illness

/tɐk̚⁵ haːn²¹ sei̯³⁵ m̩²¹ tɐk̚⁵ haːn²¹ pɛːŋ²²/


開枝散葉

ㄎㄞ ㄓ ㄙㄢˋ ㄧㄝˋ

/kʰaɪ̯⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ sän⁵¹⁻⁵³ jɛ⁵¹/

/hɔːi̯⁵⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ saːn³³ jiːp̚²/

/kʰaɪ̯⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ sän⁵¹⁻⁵³ jɛ⁵¹/

/hɔːi̯⁵⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ saːn³³ jiːp̚²/


夏雨雨人

the summer rainfall rains down on the people

ㄒㄧㄚˋ ㄩˇ ㄩˋ ㄖㄣˊ

/ɕi̯ä⁵¹ y²¹⁴⁻²¹ y⁵¹ ʐən³⁵/

/ɕi̯ä⁵¹ y²¹⁴⁻²¹ y⁵¹ ʐən³⁵/

to provide timely assistance or education


春風風人

ㄔㄨㄣ ㄈㄥ ㄈㄥˋ ㄖㄣˊ

чуньфэнфэнжэнь

čunʹfɛnfɛnžɛnʹ

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən⁵⁵ fɤŋ⁵⁵ fɤŋ⁵¹ ʐən³⁵/

/t͡sʰɵn⁵⁵ fʊŋ⁵⁵ fʊŋ⁵⁵ jɐn²¹/

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən⁵⁵ fɤŋ⁵⁵ fɤŋ⁵¹ ʐən³⁵/

/t͡sʰɵn⁵⁵ fʊŋ⁵⁵ fʊŋ⁵⁵ jɐn²¹/


曾參殺人

ㄗㄥ ㄕㄣ ㄕㄚ ㄖㄣˊ

Цзэн Шэнь шажэнь

Czɛn Šɛnʹ šažɛnʹ

/t͡sɤŋ⁵⁵ ʂən⁵⁵ ʂä⁵⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/t͡sɐŋ⁵⁵ sɐm⁵⁵ saːt̚³ jɐn²¹/

/t͡sɤŋ⁵⁵ ʂən⁵⁵ ʂä⁵⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/t͡sɐŋ⁵⁵ sɐm⁵⁵ saːt̚³ jɐn²¹/

In the past when Zengzi (real name Zeng Shen) was living in Fei County, there was a man who had the same name as him committed murder. Somebody then informed Zengzi’s mother, “Zeng Shen committed murder.” Zengzi's mother replied, “My son will never commit a murder,” and she kept calm. A short while later, another person informed her, “Zeng Shen committed murder.” She still kept calm. A short while later, yet another person informed her, “Zeng Shen committed murder.” Zengzi's mother feared, cast aside her weaving shuttle, leapt across the walls, and fled.

昔者曾子處費，費人有與曾子同名族者而殺人，人告曾子母曰：「曾參殺人

(figurative) Used as an example to show that the effects of rumours can be fearsome.


不知所謂

ㄅㄨˋ ㄓ ㄙㄨㄛˇ ㄨㄟˋ

/pu⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ weɪ̯⁵¹/

/pɐt̚⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ sɔː³⁵ wɐi̯²²/

/pu⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ weɪ̯⁵¹/

/pɐt̚⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ sɔː³⁵ wɐi̯²²/

(chiefly Cantonese) ridiculous; absurd; nonsense


黃絹幼婦

ㄏㄨㄤˊ ㄐㄩㄢˋ ㄧㄡˋ ㄈㄨˋ

хуанцзюаньюфу

/xu̯ɑŋ³⁵ t͡ɕy̯ɛn⁵¹⁻⁵³ joʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ fu⁵¹/

/xu̯ɑŋ³⁵ t͡ɕy̯ɛn⁵¹⁻⁵³ joʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ fu⁵¹/

zh-m

齏臼／齑臼 (jījiù)

(literary) A visual pun, describing the characters that constitute the word 絕妙／绝妙 (juémiào), and hence used as a synonym of it.


千夫所指

ㄑㄧㄢ ㄈㄨ ㄙㄨㄛˇ ㄓˇ

/t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ fu⁵⁵ su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰiːn⁵⁵ fuː⁵⁵ sɔː³⁵ t͡siː³⁵/

/t͡sʰiːn⁵⁵ fuː⁵⁵ sɔː³⁵ t͡siː³⁵/

criticism from the public; universal condemnation


潔身自愛

ㄐㄧㄝˊ ㄕㄣ ㄗˋ ㄞˋ

цзешэньцзыай

/t͡ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ ʂən⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ ˀaɪ̯⁵¹/

/kiːt̚³ sɐn⁵⁵ t͡siː²² ɔːi̯³³/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ ʂən⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ ˀaɪ̯⁵¹/

/kiːt̚³ sɐn⁵⁵ t͡siː²² ɔːi̯³³/

to keep one's integrity and not follow the ways of evil people


不食周粟

ㄅㄨˋ ㄕˊ ㄓㄡ ㄙㄨˋ

бу ши Чжоу су

/pu⁵¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵ ʈ͡ʂoʊ̯⁵⁵ su⁵¹/

/pɐt̚⁵ sɪk̚² t͡sɐu̯⁵⁵ sʊk̚⁵/

/pu⁵¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵ ʈ͡ʂoʊ̯⁵⁵ su⁵¹/

/pɐt̚⁵ sɪk̚² t͡sɐu̯⁵⁵ sʊk̚⁵/

Boyi and Shuqi
Shang dynasty
Zhou dynasty

Boyi and Shuqi (approximately 1046 BCE), two princes of the former Shang dynasty, refused to eat the food of the newly founded (in their opinion, usurping) Zhou dynasty. They lived in seclusion in Shouyang Mountain and ate fiddlehead ferns before starving to death

King Wu pacified the unrest of Yin (Shang), and the whole nation switched allegiance to the Zhou dynasty. But Boyi and Shuqi considered it disgraceful and expressed their loyalty to Yin by not eating any grain of Zhou. They secluded themselves in Shouyang Mountain, where they gathered ferns to eat.

Wǔ wáng yǐ píng Yīn luàn, tiānxià zōng Zhōu, ér Bóyí, Shūqí chǐ zhī, yì bù shí Zhōu sù, yǐn yú Shǒuyáng Shān, cǎiwēi ér shí zhī.

武王已平殷亂，天下宗周，而伯夷、叔齊恥之，義不食周粟，隱於首陽山，采薇而食之。

武王已平殷乱，天下宗周，而伯夷、叔齐耻之，义不食周粟，隐于首阳山，采薇而食之。

(literary, literal) to refuse to eat the food of the Zhou dynasty

(literary) to categorically refuse to cooperate with people or actions that one disagrees with out of his/her conscience or loyalty


老鼠拉龜

ㄌㄠˇ ㄕㄨˇ ㄌㄚ ㄍㄨㄟ

лаошу ла гуй

/lɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʂu²¹⁴⁻²¹ lä⁵⁵ ku̯eɪ̯⁵⁵/

/lou̯¹³ syː³⁵ laːi̯⁵⁵ kʷɐi̯⁵⁵/

/lɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʂu²¹⁴⁻²¹ lä⁵⁵ ku̯eɪ̯⁵⁵/

/lou̯¹³ syː³⁵ laːi̯⁵⁵ kʷɐi̯⁵⁵/

The idiom is a Cantonese xiehouyu and the second part may be 無從下手／无从下手 (wúcóng xiàshǒu), 無處下手／无处下手 (wúchù xiàshǒu) (in Mandarin) or 冇埞埋手 (mou⁵ deng⁶ maai⁴ sau²) (in Cantonese).

(originally Cantonese, figurative) to have no clue about how to handle a problem


大模廝樣

ㄉㄚˋ ㄇㄨˊ ㄙ ㄧㄤˋ

/tä⁵¹ mu³⁵ sz̩⁵⁵ jɑŋ⁵¹/

/taːi̯²² mou̯²¹ siː⁵⁵ jœːŋ²²/

/tä⁵¹ mu³⁵ sz̩⁵⁵ jɑŋ⁵¹/

/taːi̯²² mou̯²¹ siː⁵⁵ jœːŋ²²/

大模大樣 大模大樣#Chinese

大模大样 大模大样#Chinese


有毛有翼

/jɐu̯¹³ mou̯²¹ jɐu̯¹³ jɪk̚²/

/jɐu̯¹³ mou̯²¹ jɐu̯¹³ jɪk̚²/

(Cantonese, derogatory) to have grown up and become independent


餓狗搶屎

a hungry dog snatches up shit/hungry dogs fighting for shit

/ŋɔː²² kɐu̯³⁵ t͡sʰœːŋ³⁵ siː³⁵/

/ŋɔː²² kɐu̯³⁵ t͡sʰœːŋ³⁵ siː³⁵/

(Cantonese, derogatory) the manner of a person gobbling

(Cantonese, derogatory) the manner of people scrambling madly for something, even that not worth taking


華佗再世

ㄏㄨㄚˋ ㄊㄨㄛˊ ㄗㄞˋ ㄕˋ

ㄏㄨㄚˊ ㄊㄨㄛˊ ㄗㄞˋ ㄕˋ

Хуа То цзайши

/xu̯ä⁵¹ tʰu̯ɔ³⁵ t͡saɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

/xu̯ä³⁵ tʰu̯ɔ³⁵ t͡saɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

/waː²² tʰɔː²¹ t͡sɔːi̯³³ sɐi̯³³/

/waː²¹ tʰɔː²¹ t͡sɔːi̯³³ sɐi̯³³/

/xu̯ä⁵¹ tʰu̯ɔ³⁵ t͡saɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

/xu̯ä³⁵ tʰu̯ɔ³⁵ t͡saɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

/waː²² tʰɔː²¹ t͡sɔːi̯³³ sɐi̯³³/

/waː²¹ tʰɔː²¹ t͡sɔːi̯³³ sɐi̯³³/

a doctor with excellent medical skills, just like Hua Tuo reincarnated


走馬看花

taking a ride on a horse while looking at the flowers

ㄗㄡˇ ㄇㄚˇ ㄎㄢˋ ㄏㄨㄚ

цзоумаканьхуа

/t͡soʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ kʰän⁵¹ xu̯ä⁵⁵/

/t͡soʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ kʰän⁵¹ xu̯ä⁵⁵/

A feeling of elation when one's ambition is fulfilled or while traveling

to look roughly and hastily, without being able to get a good look at things


同工異曲

ja-r

同工異曲(どうこういきょく) (dōkōikyoku)

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (同工異曲):
* → Japanese: 同工異曲(どうこういきょく) (dōkōikyoku)

ㄊㄨㄥˊ ㄍㄨㄥ ㄧˋ ㄑㄩˇ

/tʰʊŋ³⁵ kʊŋ⁵⁵ i⁵¹ t͡ɕʰy²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/tʰʊŋ²¹ kʊŋ⁵⁵ jiː²² kʰʊk̚⁵/

/tʰʊŋ³⁵ kʊŋ⁵⁵ i⁵¹ t͡ɕʰy²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/tʰʊŋ²¹ kʊŋ⁵⁵ jiː²² kʰʊk̚⁵/

異曲同工 異曲同工#Chinese

异曲同工 异曲同工#Chinese


花錢找罪受

ㄏㄨㄚ ㄑㄧㄢˊ ㄓㄠˇ ㄗㄨㄟˋ ㄕㄡˋ

хуа цянь чжао цзуй шоу

/xu̯ä⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡su̯eɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂoʊ̯⁵¹/

/faː⁵⁵ t͡sʰiːn²¹⁻³⁵ t͡saːu̯³⁵ t͡sɵy̯²² sɐu̯²²/

to spend money on something that turns out to be unsatisfactory or even disastrous


花拳繡腿

ㄏㄨㄚ ㄑㄩㄢˊ ㄒㄧㄡˋ ㄊㄨㄟˇ

хуацюаньсютуй

/xu̯ä⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn³⁵ ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵¹ tʰu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/faː⁵⁵ kʰyːn²¹ sɐu̯³³ tʰɵy̯³⁵/

/faː⁵⁵ kʰyːn²¹ sɐu̯³³ tʰɵy̯³⁵/

highly embellished and ineffectual; fancy but impractical skills; all show and no go; pugilistic


橫刀奪愛

ㄏㄥˊ ㄉㄠ ㄉㄨㄛˊ ㄞˋ

/xɤŋ³⁵ tɑʊ̯⁵⁵ tu̯ɔ³⁵ ˀaɪ̯⁵¹/

/waːŋ²¹ tou̯⁵⁵ tyːt̚² ɔːi̯³³/

/xɤŋ³⁵ tɑʊ̯⁵⁵ tu̯ɔ³⁵ ˀaɪ̯⁵¹/

/waːŋ²¹ tou̯⁵⁵ tyːt̚² ɔːi̯³³/

to rob somebody of something or someone they cherish


男歡女愛

ㄋㄢˊ ㄏㄨㄢ ㄋㄩˇ ㄞˋ

наньхуаньнюйай

/nän³⁵ xu̯än⁵⁵ ny²¹⁴⁻²¹ ˀaɪ̯⁵¹/

/naːm²¹ fuːn⁵⁵ nɵy̯¹³ ɔːi̯³³/

/nän³⁵ xu̯än⁵⁵ ny²¹⁴⁻²¹ ˀaɪ̯⁵¹/

/naːm²¹ fuːn⁵⁵ nɵy̯¹³ ɔːi̯³³/

passionate love between a man and a woman


憶苦思甜

ㄧˋ ㄎㄨˇ ㄙ ㄊㄧㄢˊ

/i⁵¹ kʰu²¹⁴⁻²¹ sz̩⁵⁵ tʰi̯ɛn³⁵/

/jɪk̚⁵ fuː³⁵ siː⁵⁵ tʰiːm²¹/

/i⁵¹ kʰu²¹⁴⁻²¹ sz̩⁵⁵ tʰi̯ɛn³⁵/

/jɪk̚⁵ fuː³⁵ siː⁵⁵ tʰiːm²¹/

to recall one's difficult past and savour one's joyful present


充飢畫餅

ㄔㄨㄥ ㄐㄧ ㄏㄨㄚˋ ㄅㄧㄥˇ

чунцзи хуа бин

/ʈ͡ʂʰʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡ɕi⁵⁵ xu̯ä⁵¹ piŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/ʈ͡ʂʰʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡ɕi⁵⁵ xu̯ä⁵¹ piŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

畫餅充飢 畫餅充飢#Chinese

画饼充饥 画饼充饥#Chinese


百密一疏

ㄅㄞˇ ㄇㄧˋ ㄧ ㄕㄨ

/paɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ mi⁵¹⁻⁵³ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ ʂu⁵⁵/

/paːk̚³ mɐt̚² jɐt̚⁵ sɔː⁵⁵/

/paɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ mi⁵¹⁻⁵³ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ ʂu⁵⁵/

/paːk̚³ mɐt̚² jɐt̚⁵ sɔː⁵⁵/

I think that your plan of killing [Ko Yee] with my hand missed out a thing. We're in the international waters. You can't act recklessly. Only the country in which this ship was registered can arrest me.

ngo⁵ gok³ dak¹ nei⁵ ni¹ go³ ze³ dou¹ saat³ jan⁴ gai³ waak⁶ baak³ mat⁶ jat¹ so¹, ni¹ dou⁶ hai⁶ gung¹ hoi², m⁴ ho² ji⁵ lyun⁶⁻² lai⁴, zi² jau⁵ ne¹ zek³ syun⁴ zyu³ caak³ ge³ gwok³ gaa¹ sin¹ zi³ ho² ji⁵ laa¹ ngo⁵ gaa³!

我覺得你呢個借刀殺人計劃百密一疏，呢度係公海，唔可以亂嚟，只有呢隻船註冊嘅國家先至可以拉我㗎！

我觉得你呢个借刀杀人计划百密一疏，呢度系公海，唔可以乱嚟，只有呢只船注册嘅国家先至可以拉我㗎！

something was missed in a sophisticated plan


奇談怪論

ㄑㄧˊ ㄊㄢˊ ㄍㄨㄞˋ ㄌㄨㄣˋ

цитаньгуайлунь

/t͡ɕʰi³⁵ tʰän³⁵ ku̯aɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ lu̯ən⁵¹/

/kʰei̯²¹ tʰaːm²¹ kʷaːi̯³³ lɵn²²/

/t͡ɕʰi³⁵ tʰän³⁵ ku̯aɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ lu̯ən⁵¹/

/kʰei̯²¹ tʰaːm²¹ kʷaːi̯³³ lɵn²²/


重新做人

ㄔㄨㄥˊ ㄒㄧㄣ ㄗㄨㄛˋ ㄖㄣˊ

чунсиньцзожэнь

/ʈ͡ʂʰʊŋ³⁵ ɕin⁵⁵ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ ʐən³⁵/

/t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ sɐn⁵⁵ t͡sou̯²² jɐn²¹/

/ʈ͡ʂʰʊŋ³⁵ ɕin⁵⁵ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ ʐən³⁵/

/t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ sɐn⁵⁵ t͡sou̯²² jɐn²¹/

turn over a new leaf
turn over a new leaf


無一例外

ㄨˊ ㄧ ㄌㄧˋ ㄨㄞˋ

/u³⁵ i⁵⁵⁻³⁵ li⁵¹⁻⁵³ waɪ̯⁵¹/

/u³⁵ i⁵⁵⁻³⁵ li⁵¹⁻⁵³ waɪ̯⁵¹/


月是故鄉明

ㄩㄝˋ ㄕˋ ㄍㄨˋ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄇㄧㄥˊ

юэ ши гусян мин

/ɥɛ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ ku⁵¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ miŋ³⁵/

/ɥɛ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ ku⁵¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ miŋ³⁵/

This night will be Bailu; and the moon in the homeland is brighter.

Du Fu,《月夜憶舍弟》

Lù cóng jīnyè bái, yuè shì gùxiāng míng.

露從今夜白，月是故鄉明。

Du Fu,《月夜憶舍弟》

露从今夜白，月是故乡明。

there's no place like home
there's no place like home


外國的月亮比較圓

The moon in foreign countries is rounder

ㄨㄞˋ ㄍㄨㄛˊ ˙ㄉㄜ ㄩㄝˋ ˙ㄌㄧㄤ ㄅㄧˇ ㄐㄧㄠˋ ㄩㄢˊ

ㄨㄞˋ ㄍㄨㄛˊ ˙ㄉㄜ ㄩㄝˋ ㄌㄧㄤˋ ㄅㄧˇ ㄐㄧㄠˋ ㄩㄢˊ

wai⁴-kuo² tê⁵ yüeh⁴-liang⁵ pi³-chiao⁴ yüan²

вайго дэ юэлян бицзяо юань

/waɪ̯⁵¹ ku̯ɔ³⁵ d̥ə³ ɥɛ⁵¹ li̯ɑŋ¹ pi²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹ ɥɛn³⁵/

wai⁴-kuo² tê⁵ yüeh⁴-liang⁴ pi³-chiao⁴ yüan²

/waɪ̯⁵¹ ku̯ɔ³⁵ d̥ə³ ɥɛ⁵¹⁻⁵³ li̯ɑŋ⁵¹ pi²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹ ɥɛn³⁵/

the grass is always greener on the other side (used when comparing one's own country and foreign countries)


七情上面

/t͡sʰɐt̚⁵ t͡sʰɪŋ²¹ sœːŋ¹³ miːn²²⁻³⁵/

/t͡sʰɐt̚⁵ t͡sʰɪŋ²¹ sœːŋ¹³ miːn²²⁻³⁵/

(Cantonese) to be very passionate and expressive; to be so immersed in something that one's facial expressions are intense and full of emotions


耳聞目睹

ㄦˇ ㄨㄣˊ ㄇㄨˋ ㄉㄨˇ

/ˀɤɻ²¹⁴⁻²¹ wən³⁵ mu⁵¹ tu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jiː¹³ mɐn²¹ mʊk̚² tou̯³⁵/

/ˀɤɻ²¹⁴⁻²¹ wən³⁵ mu⁵¹ tu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jiː¹³ mɐn²¹ mʊk̚² tou̯³⁵/

to hear with one's ears and see with one's eyes; to personally see and hear


兼而有之

ㄐㄧㄢ ㄦˊ ㄧㄡˇ ㄓ

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/kiːm⁵⁵ jiː²¹ jɐu̯¹³ t͡siː⁵⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/kiːm⁵⁵ jiː²¹ jɐu̯¹³ t͡siː⁵⁵/


欺行霸市

ㄑㄧ ㄏㄤˊ ㄅㄚˋ ㄕˋ

/t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵ xɑŋ³⁵ pä⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

/t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵ xɑŋ³⁵ pä⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

(Mainland China) to oppress others in the same trade and monopolize the market


三九唔識七

/saːm⁵⁵ kɐu̯³⁵ m̩²¹ sɪk̚⁵ t͡sʰɐt̚⁵/

/saːm⁵⁵ kɐu̯³⁵ m̩²¹ sɪk̚⁵ t͡sʰɐt̚⁵/

三唔識七 三唔識七#Chinese

三唔识七 三唔识七#Chinese

(Cantonese) Synonym of 三唔識七／三唔识七 (“to be complete strangers”)


你有張良計，我有過牆梯

You haveZhang Liang's strategy, but I have a scaling ladder

nei⁵ jau⁵ zoeng¹ loeng⁴ gai³, ngo⁵ jau⁵ gwo³ coeng⁴ tai¹

néih yáuh jēung lèuhng gai, ngóh yáuh gwo chèuhng tāi

nei⁵ jau⁵ dzoeng¹ loeng⁴ gai³, ngo⁵ jau⁵ gwo³ tsoeng⁴ tai¹

néi⁵ yeo⁵ zêng¹ lêng⁴ gei³, ngo⁵ yeo⁵ guo³ cêng⁴ tei¹

/nei̯¹³ jɐu̯¹³ t͡sœːŋ⁵⁵ lœːŋ²¹ kɐi̯³³ ŋɔː¹³ jɐu̯¹³ kʷɔː³³ t͡sʰœːŋ²¹ tʰɐi̯⁵⁵/

(Cantonese) You have a clever strategy, but I have my countermeasures too.


潮州佬煲粥——呢鑊杰

/t͡sʰiːu̯²¹ t͡sɐu̯⁵⁵ lou̯³⁵ pou̯⁵⁵ t͡sʊk̚⁵ niː⁵⁵ wɔːk̚² kiːt̚²/

Pun on the words 鑊／镬 (wok⁶, “wok; trouble, problem”) and 杰 (git⁶, “viscous; serious”). Teochew-style congee is more viscous than Canton-style congee.

Teochew guy makes congee – it's awok with viscous [congee]


鴛鴦蝴蝶

ㄩㄢ ㄧㄤ ㄏㄨˊ ㄉㄧㄝˊ

/ɥɛn⁵⁵ jɑŋ⁵⁵ xu³⁵ ti̯ɛ³⁵/

/jyːn⁵⁵ jœːŋ⁵⁵ wuː²¹ tiːp̚²/

/ɥɛn⁵⁵ jɑŋ⁵⁵ xu³⁵ ti̯ɛ³⁵/

/jyːn⁵⁵ jœːŋ⁵⁵ wuː²¹ tiːp̚²/

mandarin ducks and butterflies (i.e. love birds)

(derogatory) Used in reference to populist and romantic writing around 1900


妙筆生花

ㄇㄧㄠˋ ㄅㄧˇ ㄕㄥ ㄏㄨㄚ

/mi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹ pi²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ xu̯ä⁵⁵/

/miːu̯²² pɐt̚⁵ sɐŋ⁵⁵ faː⁵⁵/

/mi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹ pi²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ xu̯ä⁵⁵/

/miːu̯²² pɐt̚⁵ sɐŋ⁵⁵ faː⁵⁵/


欺男霸女

ㄑㄧ ㄋㄢˊ ㄅㄚˋ ㄋㄩˇ

/t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵ nän³⁵ pä⁵¹ ny²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/hei̯⁵⁵ naːm²¹ paː³³ nɵy̯¹³/

/t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵ nän³⁵ pä⁵¹ ny²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/hei̯⁵⁵ naːm²¹ paː³³ nɵy̯¹³/

to oppress the people; to act tyrannically


朝見口晚見面

/t͡siːu̯⁵⁵ kiːn³³ hɐu̯³⁵ maːn¹³ kiːn³³ miːn²²/

(Cantonese) to see each other day and night


大呼小叫

ㄉㄚˋ ㄏㄨ ㄒㄧㄠˇ ㄐㄧㄠˋ

/tä⁵¹ xu⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/taːi̯²² fuː⁵⁵ siːu̯³⁵ kiːu̯³³/

/tä⁵¹ xu⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/taːi̯²² fuː⁵⁵ siːu̯³⁵ kiːu̯³³/


冰雪聰明

ㄅㄧㄥ ㄒㄩㄝˇ ㄘㄨㄥ ㄇㄧㄥˊ

бинсюэцунмин

/piŋ⁵⁵ ɕy̯ɛ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ miŋ³⁵/

/pɪŋ⁵⁵ syːt̚³ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ mɪŋ²¹/

/piŋ⁵⁵ ɕy̯ɛ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ miŋ³⁵/

/pɪŋ⁵⁵ syːt̚³ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ mɪŋ²¹/

lang

《送樊二十三侍御赴漢中判官》

《送樊二十三侍御赴漢中判官》

Your apprehension is as bright as ice and snow, your military sharpness speeds like thunder.

Tang dynasty, Du Fu, Seeing Off Attendant Censor Fan (23) on his Way to a Post as Administrative Assistant in Hanzhong (《送樊二十三侍御赴漢中判官》), translation by Stephen Owen, The Poetry of Du Fu

Bīngxuě jìng cōngmíng, léitíng zǒu jīngruì.

冰雪淨聰明，雷霆走精銳。

冰雪净聪明，雷霆走精锐。

Du Fu
Stephen Owen (sinologist)
Tang dynasty


泊個好碼頭

/pʰaːk̚³ kɔː³³ hou̯³⁵ maː¹³ tʰɐu̯²¹/

/pʰaːk̚³ kɔː³³ hou̯³⁵ maː¹³ tʰɐu̯²¹/

(Cantonese, figuratively) to find an ideal person to accompany with


有頭威，冇尾陣

/jɐu̯¹³ tʰɐu̯²¹ wɐi̯⁵⁵ mou̯¹³ mei̯¹³ t͡sɐn²²/

(Cantonese) to start off strong, but finish weak; to be inconsistent with one's effort


肏不百

/t͡sʰɑʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ paɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰɑʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ paɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

肏你媽，你不會百度嗎？

肏你妈，你不会百度吗？

Used to express dissatisfaction when someone has asked something or a question that is quite simple that can be easily found or solved by just taking a few steps in using the Baidu search engine.

(neologism, Internet slang) Fuck, can't you Baidu it?/Fuck, can't you use Baidu to search for it?


店無書砸

ㄉㄧㄢˋ ㄨˊ ㄕㄨ ㄗㄚˊ

дянь у шу цза

/ti̯ɛn⁵¹ u³⁵ ʂu⁵⁵ t͡sä³⁵/

/ti̯ɛn⁵¹ u³⁵ ʂu⁵⁵ t͡sä³⁵/

A pseudo-chengyu condensed from:
:
: Note: The words "沒有" and "無" have the same meaning in Chinese.

Shūdiàn méiyǒu nǐ de shū, wǒ bǎ shūdiàn zá le.

書店沒有你的書，我把書店砸了。

书店没有你的书，我把书店砸了。

Used to express one's adoration to someone who has talked so skilledly or has said something so rich and profound that is like a writer of literary works which are good enough to be sold in bookstores.

(neologism, Internet slang) There is not your book in the bookstore, so I have smashed up the bookstore.


趕頭趕命

/kɔːn³⁵ tʰɐu̯²¹ kɔːn³⁵ mɛːŋ²²/

/kɔːn³⁵ tʰɐu̯²¹ kɔːn³⁵ mɛːŋ²²/


危過危地馬拉

/ŋɐi̯²¹ kʷɔː³³ ŋɐi̯²¹ tei̯²² maː¹³ laːi̯⁵⁵/

(Cantonese, simile) very dangerous; very risky


仆心仆肺

/pʰʊk̚⁵ sɐm⁵⁵ pʰʊk̚⁵ fɐi̯³³/

/pʰʊk̚⁵ sɐm⁵⁵ pʰʊk̚⁵ fɐi̯³³/

仆心仆命 仆心仆命#Chinese


仆心仆命

/pʰʊk̚⁵ sɐm⁵⁵ pʰʊk̚⁵ mɛːŋ²²/

/pʰʊk̚⁵ sɐm⁵⁵ pʰʊk̚⁵ mɛːŋ²²/

(Cantonese) to spare no effort; to go to great lengths


九漏魚

/t͡ɕi̯oʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ loʊ̯⁵¹ y³⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯oʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ loʊ̯⁵¹ y³⁵/

one who escaped the Nine-year Compulsory Education/
the "fish"(person) which escaped the "net" of the Nine-year Compulsory Education

九年義務教育漏網之魚

九年义务教育漏网之鱼

Used to satirize one's having made mistakes which can only be made by the low-aged as is generally accepted.

(neologism, Internet slang, derogatory) one who escaped the Nine-year Compulsory Education


閻羅王貼告示——鬼話連篇

head

閻羅王貼告示——鬼話連篇

阎罗王贴告示——鬼话连篇

Yama posts notices – pieces in devil's language

ㄧㄢˊ ㄌㄨㄛˊ ㄨㄤˊ ㄊㄧㄝ ㄍㄠˋ ㄕˋ

ㄍㄨㄟˇ ㄏㄨㄚˋ ㄌㄧㄢˊ ㄆㄧㄢ

Яньло Ван те гаоши

гуйхуаляньпянь

/jɛn³⁵ lu̯ɔ³⁵ wɑŋ³⁵ tʰi̯ɛ⁵⁵ kɑʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹ ku̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu̯ä⁵¹ li̯ɛn³⁵ pʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵/

/jiːm²¹ lɔː²¹ wɔːŋ²¹ tʰiːp̚³ kou̯³³ siː²² kʷɐi̯³⁵ waː²²⁻³⁵ liːn²¹ pʰiːn⁵⁵/

/jiːm²¹ lɔː²¹ wɔːŋ²¹ tʰiːp̚³ kou̯³³ siː²² kʷɐi̯³⁵ waː²² liːn²¹ pʰiːn⁵⁵/

(xiehouyu) to talk a lot of nonsense; to tell a series of untruths


爺關更

/jɛ³⁵ ku̯än⁵⁵ kɤŋ⁵⁵/

/jɛ³⁵ ku̯än⁵⁵ kɤŋ⁵⁵/

爺爺，您關注的up主更新了。

爷爷，您关注的up主更新了。

Used to express both one's excitedness caused by the uploader one has followed having updated his/her works after a long-time inactiveness and one's dissatisfaction caused by the uploader one has followed having kept not updating his/her works for a long time.

(neologism, Internet slang) Grandpa, the uploader you have followed has updated his/her works (mainly video(s)).


窮得只剩下錢

ㄑㄩㄥˊ ˙ㄉㄜ ㄓˇ ㄕㄥˋ ㄒㄧㄚˋ ㄑㄧㄢˊ

цюн дэ чжи шэнся цянь

/t͡ɕʰi̯ʊŋ³⁵ d̥ə³ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂɤŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ɕi̯ä⁵¹ t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn³⁵/

From the title of a book written by Taiwanese priest Wang Yang-ming (王陽明), which was once brought by Chen Chih-chung to his father in prison, Chen Shui-bian.

穷得只剩下钱
窮得衹剩下錢

(sarcastic) to care nothing but money; to be rich but full of emptiness in mind


帽事

/mou̯²²⁻³⁵ siː²²/

/mou̯²²⁻³⁵ siː²²/

Near-homophonic pun of 冇事 (mou⁵ si⁶, “no problem”). 帽 (mou⁶⁻²) is short for 綠帽／绿帽 (luk⁶ mou⁶⁻²).

帽事嘅……

(Hong Kong Cantonese, neologism, humorous) Used when one suspects someone has become a cuckold.


怕……有牙

/pʰaː³³ jɐu̯¹³ ŋaː²¹/

/pʰaː³³ jɐu̯¹³ ŋaː²¹/

(Cantonese) to be not afraid of someone or something


根正苗紅

ㄍㄣ ㄓㄥˋ ㄇㄧㄠˊ ㄏㄨㄥˊ

гэньчжэнмяохун

/kən⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹ mi̯ɑʊ̯³⁵ xʊŋ³⁵/

/kɐn⁵⁵ t͡sɪŋ³³ miːu̯²¹ hʊŋ²¹/

/kən⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹ mi̯ɑʊ̯³⁵ xʊŋ³⁵/

/kɐn⁵⁵ t͡sɪŋ³³ miːu̯²¹ hʊŋ²¹/


何以見得

ㄏㄜˊ ㄧˇ ㄐㄧㄢˋ ㄉㄜˊ

/xɤ³⁵ i²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ tɤ³⁵/

/hɔː²¹ jiː¹³ kiːn³³ tɐk̚⁵/

/xɤ³⁵ i²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ tɤ³⁵/

/hɔː²¹ jiː¹³ kiːn³³ tɐk̚⁵/

(rhetoric) How can you know that...?; Why do you think that...?


整你個掣

/t͡sɪŋ³⁵ nei̯¹³ kɔː³³ t͡sɐi̯³³/

/t͡sɪŋ³⁵ nei̯¹³ kɔː³³ t͡sɐi̯³³/

(Cantonese, minced oath) screw you; get stuffed


吆五喝六

ㄧㄠ ㄨˇ ㄏㄜˋ ㄌㄧㄡˋ

/jɑʊ̯⁵⁵ u²¹⁴⁻²¹ xɤ⁵¹⁻⁵³ li̯oʊ̯⁵¹/

/jiːu̯⁵⁵ ŋ̍¹³ hɔːt̚³ lʊk̚²/

/jɑʊ̯⁵⁵ u²¹⁴⁻²¹ xɤ⁵¹⁻⁵³ li̯oʊ̯⁵¹/

/jiːu̯⁵⁵ ŋ̍¹³ hɔːt̚³ lʊk̚²/


趕喉趕命

/kɔːn³⁵ hɐu̯²¹ kɔːn³⁵ mɛːŋ²²/

/kɔːn³⁵ hɐu̯²¹ kɔːn³⁵ mɛːŋ²²/


大步𨈇過

大步𬦾过
大步檻過
大步𨂾過

/taːi̯²² pou̯²² laːm³³ kʷɔː³³/

/taːi̯²² pou̯²² laːm³³ kʷɔː³³/

(Cantonese) to be able to escape from disaster, illness, etc.; to be able to weather the storm


吉人天相

ㄐㄧˊ ㄖㄣˊ ㄊㄧㄢ ㄒㄧㄤˋ

цзижэньтяньсян

/t͡ɕi³⁵ ʐən³⁵ tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵¹/

/kɐt̚⁵ jɐn²¹ tʰiːn⁵⁵ sœːŋ³³/

/t͡ɕi³⁵ ʐən³⁵ tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵¹/

/kɐt̚⁵ jɐn²¹ tʰiːn⁵⁵ sœːŋ³³/

Short for 吉人自有天相 (jírén zìyǒu tiānxiàng).

short for

We hope that he will be blessed by the Heaven and get well soon.

Wǒmen xīwàng tā jíréntiānxiàng, zǎorì kāngfù.

我們希望他吉人天相，早日康復。

我们希望他吉人天相，早日康复。

A good person enjoys the help from the Heaven. (Used as blessing words for people in difficulties)


一戙都冇

/jɐt̚⁵ tʊŋ²² tou̯⁵⁵ mou̯¹³/

/jɐt̚⁵ tʊŋ²² tou̯⁵⁵ mou̯¹³/

(Cantonese) to have nothing left; to be utterly defeated; to have no way out


公事公辦

ㄍㄨㄥ ㄕˋ ㄍㄨㄥ ㄅㄢˋ

гуншигунбань

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹ kʊŋ⁵⁵ pän⁵¹/

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ siː²² kʊŋ⁵⁵ paːn²²/

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹ kʊŋ⁵⁵ pän⁵¹/

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ siː²² kʊŋ⁵⁵ paːn²²/

to do official business according to official rules; to handle matters without bias and favouritism


功高蓋主

ㄍㄨㄥ ㄍㄠ ㄍㄞˋ ㄓㄨˇ

гунгаогайчжу

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ kɑʊ̯⁵⁵ kaɪ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ kou̯⁵⁵ kʰɔːi̯³³ t͡syː³⁵/

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ kɑʊ̯⁵⁵ kaɪ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ kou̯⁵⁵ kʰɔːi̯³³ t͡syː³⁵/

one's contributions or feats are so great that one's monarch or superior feels uneasy and insecure


七月半鴨仔——毋知死活

/t͡sʰit̚³²⁻⁴ ɡe(ʔ)⁴⁻¹¹ puã¹¹ a(ʔ)³²⁻⁴⁴ a⁵³ m̩³³⁻¹¹ t͡sai⁴⁴⁻³³ si⁵³⁻⁴⁴ uaʔ⁴/

/t͡sʰit̚³²⁻⁴ ɡe(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ puã²¹ a(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ a⁵³ m̩²²⁻²¹ t͡sai⁴⁴⁻²² si⁵³⁻⁴⁴ uaʔ⁴/

/t͡sʰit̚³²⁻⁴ ɡue(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ puã²¹ a(ʔ)³²⁻⁴⁴ a⁴¹ m̩³³⁻²¹ t͡sai⁴⁴⁻³³ si⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ uaʔ⁴/

/t͡sʰit̚³²⁻⁵ ɡue(ʔ)¹²¹⁻²¹ puã²¹ a(ʔ)³²⁻⁴⁴ a⁵³ m̩²²⁻²¹ t͡sai⁴⁴⁻²² si⁵³⁻⁴⁴ uaʔ¹²¹/

/t͡sʰit̚⁵⁻²⁴ ɡə(ʔ)²⁴⁻² puã⁴¹ a(ʔ)⁵ a⁵⁵⁴ m̩²² t͡sai³³ si⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ uaʔ²⁴/

According to customs in Southern China, chicken is used as sacrifice for gods, while ducks are used as sacrifice for ghosts. Therefore, ducks are likely to be slaughtered at the Ghost Festival.

ducks on Ghost Festival - don't know whether they can live

(Hokkien) to act recklessly; to do something regardless of danger


屎到尻川口才欲放

/sai⁴¹ kau²¹⁻⁴¹ kʰa⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰŋ̍⁴⁴⁻³³ kʰau⁴¹ t͡sia(ʔ)³²⁻⁴¹ be(ʔ)³²⁻⁴¹ paŋ²¹/

/sai⁵³ kau¹¹⁻⁵³ kʰa⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰŋ̍⁴⁴⁻³³ kʰau⁵³ t͡sia(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ be(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ paŋ¹¹/

(Hokkien, mildly vulgar) to not do something until the last minute


屙屎唔出怨豬嫲

屙屎唔出怨猪嫲
屙屎毋出怨豬嫲
屙屎毋出怨豬嬤
屙屎不出怨豬母

blame the female pig when one is unable to poop

/o²⁴ sɨ³¹ m¹¹ t͡sʰut̚² i̯en⁵⁵ t͡su²⁴ ma¹¹/

/o²⁴ sɨ³¹ m¹¹ t͡sʰut̚² (j)i̯an⁵⁵ t͡su²⁴ ma¹¹/

/o⁴⁴⁻³⁵ sz̩³¹ m̩¹¹ t͡sʰut̚¹ ian⁵³ t͡su⁴⁴⁻³⁵ ma¹¹/

(Hakka) a man always finds excuses upon failure rather than reflecting on himself; a bad workman always blames his tools


自家脧仔歪，嫌人尿桶漏

to blame the toilet for leaking while one has a crooked penis

ci⁴ ga¹ zoi¹ ê³ vai¹, hiam² ngin² ngiau⁴ tung³ lêu⁴

ci⁴ ga¹ zoi¹ e³ vai¹, hiam² ngin² ngiau⁴ tung³ leu⁴

/t͡sʰɨ⁵⁵ ka²⁴⁻¹¹ t͡soi̯²⁴ e³¹ vai̯²⁴ hi̯am¹¹ ŋin¹¹ ŋi̯au̯⁵⁵ tʰuŋ³¹ leu̯⁵⁵/

/t͡sʰz̩⁵³ ka⁴⁴ t͡soɪ⁴⁴⁻³⁵ e³¹ ʋaɪ⁴⁴⁻³⁵ hiam¹¹ ŋin¹¹ ŋiau⁵³⁻⁵⁵ tʰʊŋ³¹ leu⁵³/

(Hakka, mildly vulgar) a man always finds excuses upon failure rather than reflecting on himself; a bad workman always blames his tools


吊頸都要敨下氣

吊颈都要敨下气
吊頸都要唞下氣
吊頸都要抖下氣

Some breath is needed even when one is hanging oneself

/tiːu̯³³ kɛːŋ³⁵ tou̯⁵⁵ jiːu̯³³ tʰɐu̯³⁵ haː¹³ hei̯³³/

(Cantonese) Some break is needed after hard work.


吹大法螺

to play the Buddhist conch shell trumpet

ㄔㄨㄟ ㄉㄚˋ ㄈㄚˇ ㄌㄨㄛˊ

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ tä⁵¹ fä²¹⁴⁻²¹ lu̯ɔ³⁵/

/t͡sʰɵy̯⁵⁵ taːi̯²² faːt̚³ lɔː²¹/

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ tä⁵¹ fä²¹⁴⁻²¹ lu̯ɔ³⁵/

/t͡sʰɵy̯⁵⁵ taːi̯²² faːt̚³ lɔː²¹/

大吹法螺 大吹法螺#Chinese


大吹法螺

→ Japanese: 法螺(ほら)を吹(ふ)く (hora o fuku) (calque), 法螺(ほら)吹(ふ)き (hora fuki) (calque)

ㄉㄚˋ ㄔㄨㄟ ㄈㄚˇ ㄌㄨㄛˊ

/tä⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ fä²¹⁴⁻²¹ lu̯ɔ³⁵/

/taːi̯²² t͡sʰɵy̯⁵⁵ faːt̚³ lɔː²¹/

/tä⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ fä²¹⁴⁻²¹ lu̯ɔ³⁵/

/taːi̯²² t͡sʰɵy̯⁵⁵ faːt̚³ lɔː²¹/

From earlier 吹大法螺 (chuīdàfǎluó). This term appeared in various Buddhist texts. The following is one of the examples from the Lotus Sutra

I am very sure that the Buddha, the Bhagavat, will now teach the great Dharma, rain down the great Dharma, blow the conch of the great Dharma, beat the drum of the great Dharma, and reveal the meaning of the great Dharma.

Lotus Sutra, translated by Kumārajīva (English translation extracted from https://www.bdk.or.jp/document/dgtl-dl/dBET_T0262_LotusSutra_2007.pdf)

Jīn fó shìzūn yù shuō dàfǎ, yǔ dàfǎ yǔ, chuī dàfǎ luó, jī dàfǎ gǔ, yǎn dàfǎ yì.

今佛世尊欲說大法，雨大法雨，吹大法螺，擊大法鼓，演大法義。

今佛世尊欲说大法，雨大法雨，吹大法螺，击大法鼓，演大法义。


話口未完

/waː²² hɐu̯³⁵ mei̯²² jyːn²¹/

/waː²² hɐu̯³⁵ mei̯²² jyːn²¹/

(Cantonese) right on cue; speak of the devil


等著瞧

ㄉㄥˇ ˙ㄓㄜ ㄑㄧㄠˊ

/tɤŋ²¹⁴ ɖ͡ʐ̥ə⁴ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑʊ̯³⁵/

/tɤŋ²¹⁴ ɖ͡ʐ̥ə⁴ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑʊ̯³⁵/

(literal) wait and see; time will tell; let the dust settle

「我不相信印度的航天科技能超越中國。」「你不信，那便等著瞧！」
Belligerent Chinese: I don't think India can ever overtake China in aerospace technology.
Infuriated Indian: What goes up must come down!
News Headlines: India makes history, first to land on lunar south pole

惡人先告狀，你等著瞧！

恶人先告状，你等着瞧！

Gǒuyǎo Lǚ Dòngbīn, bùshíhǎorénxīn. Nǐ děngzheqiáo!

狗咬呂洞賓，不識好人心。你等著瞧！

狗咬吕洞宾，不识好人心。你等着瞧！

what goes around comes around
what goes around comes around

(retort, taunt) just you wait; you'll get yours; what goes around comes around

你不服來告，我等著瞧！

I am unfazed by the prospect of a civil charge. Sue me if you can!

你有種來踢館呀，我等著瞧！

Dare visit our martial venue and I'll show you who's the boss!

「你孩子得了白血病，是因為你們家殺業太重，作家長的應該懺悔。」「你不服愛上哪告上哪告去，我等著瞧！」

2019, “吃人的伪国学，谁在用传统文化谋财害命？”, in 微信公众号:

Your child is claimed by leukemia as karma to your sin-laden family. Repent of your presumptuous parenthood.
Hold my ass accountable! If you find a way, I'll be all ears!

(offensive) a display of disbelief, disdain or defiance


風水輪流轉

ㄈㄥ ㄕㄨㄟˇ ㄌㄨㄣˊ ㄌㄧㄡˊ ㄓㄨㄢˋ

фэншуй луньлю чжуань

/fɤŋ⁵⁵ ʂu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ lu̯ən³⁵ li̯oʊ̯³⁵ ʈ͡ʂu̯än⁵¹/

/fʊŋ⁵⁵ sɵy̯³⁵ lɵn²¹ lɐu̯²¹ t͡syːn³⁵/

/fʊŋ⁵⁵ sɵy̯³⁵ lɵn²¹ lɐu̯²¹ t͡syːn³⁵/

the shoe will be on the other foot
the shoe is on the other foot

fortunes change; "the shoe will be on the other foot"


生人霸死地

a living person occupying place for the dead

/saːŋ⁵⁵ jɐn²¹ paː³³ sei̯³⁵ tei̯²²/

/saːŋ⁵⁵ jɐn²¹ paː³³ sei̯³⁵ tei̯²²/


堅過石堅

/kiːn⁵⁵ kʷɔː³³ sɛːk̚² kiːn⁵⁵/

/kiːn⁵⁵ kʷɔː³³ sɛːk̚² kiːn⁵⁵/

Reinterpretation of Hong Kong actor Shih Kien's name (literally "as hard as stone"). 堅／坚 (gin¹) can mean both “hard” and “true” in Cantonese.

(Hong Kong Cantonese, humorous) definitely true


同聲同氣

/tʰʊŋ²¹ sɛːŋ⁵⁵ tʰʊŋ²¹ hei̯³³/

/tʰʊŋ²¹ sɛːŋ⁵⁵ tʰʊŋ²¹ hei̯³³/


四方木——踢一踢，喐一喐

head

四方木——踢一踢，喐一喐

四方木——踢一踢，郁一郁

A square wood - moves once when kicked once

/sei̯³³ fɔːŋ⁵⁵ mʊk̚² tʰɛːk̚³ jɐt̚⁵ tʰɛːk̚³ jʊk̚⁵ jɐt̚⁵ jʊk̚⁵/

(Cantonese, figurative) being lazy or with passive attitude and only does own's job when asked to


擡棺材甩褲——失禮死人

抬棺材甩褲——失禮死人
抬棺材甩裤——失礼死人

Pants come off when carrying the coffin - disgrace to the dead/very disgraceful

/tʰɔːi̯²¹ kuːn⁵⁵ t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹ lɐt̚⁵ fuː³³ sɐt̚⁵ lɐi̯¹³ sei̯³⁵ jɐn²¹/

(Cantonese) very disgraceful; very disrespectful


甘死如飴

ㄍㄢ ㄙˇ ㄖㄨˊ ㄧˊ

/kän⁵⁵ sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʐu³⁵ i³⁵/

/kän⁵⁵ sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʐu³⁵ i³⁵/


唔知頭唔知路

/m̩²¹ t͡siː⁵⁵ tʰɐu̯²¹ m̩²¹ t͡siː⁵⁵ lou̯³³/

(Cantonese) to know nothing (on a particular subject)


良辰吉日

ㄌㄧㄤˊ ㄔㄣˊ ㄐㄧˊ ㄖˋ

лянчэньцзижи

/li̯ɑŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰən³⁵ t͡ɕi³⁵ ʐ̩⁵¹/

/lœːŋ²¹ sɐn²¹ kɐt̚⁵ jɐt̚²/

/li̯ɑŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰən³⁵ t͡ɕi³⁵ ʐ̩⁵¹/

/lœːŋ²¹ sɐn²¹ kɐt̚⁵ jɐt̚²/


大飲大食

/taːi̯²² jɐm³⁵ taːi̯²² sɪk̚²/

/taːi̯²² jɐm³⁵ taːi̯²² sɪk̚²/

(Cantonese) to indulge in eating and drinking; to binge eat and drink


熟門熟路

ㄕㄨˊ ㄇㄣˊ ㄕㄨˊ ㄌㄨˋ

/ʂu³⁵ mən³⁵ ʂu³⁵ lu⁵¹/

/sʊk̚² muːn²¹ sʊk̚² lou̯²²/

/ʂu³⁵ mən³⁵ ʂu³⁵ lu⁵¹/

/sʊk̚² muːn²¹ sʊk̚² lou̯²²/

to know something very well; to be very familiar with something


大吃大喝

ㄉㄚˋ ㄔ ㄉㄚˋ ㄏㄜ

/tä⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩⁵⁵ tä⁵¹ xɤ⁵⁵/

/taːi̯²² hɛːk̚³ taːi̯²² hɔːt̚³/

/tä⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩⁵⁵ tä⁵¹ xɤ⁵⁵/

/taːi̯²² hɛːk̚³ taːi̯²² hɔːt̚³/


擦身而過

ㄘㄚ ㄕㄣ ㄦˊ ㄍㄨㄛˋ

/t͡sʰä⁵⁵ ʂən⁵⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ ku̯ɔ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰaːt̚³ sɐn⁵⁵ jiː²¹ kʷɔː³³/

/t͡sʰä⁵⁵ ʂən⁵⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ ku̯ɔ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰaːt̚³ sɐn⁵⁵ jiː²¹ kʷɔː³³/

to brush past (someone, opportunity, death, etc.)


年富力強

ㄋㄧㄢˊ ㄈㄨˋ ㄌㄧˋ ㄑㄧㄤˊ

/ni̯ɛn³⁵ fu⁵¹⁻⁵³ li⁵¹ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑŋ³⁵/

/niːn²¹ fuː³³ lɪk̚² kʰœːŋ²¹/

/ni̯ɛn³⁵ fu⁵¹⁻⁵³ li⁵¹ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑŋ³⁵/

/niːn²¹ fuː³³ lɪk̚² kʰœːŋ²¹/


年輕力壯

ㄋㄧㄢˊ ㄑㄧㄥ ㄌㄧˋ ㄓㄨㄤˋ

няньцинличжуан

/ni̯ɛn³⁵ t͡ɕʰiŋ⁵⁵ li⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂu̯ɑŋ⁵¹/

/niːn²¹ hɪŋ⁵⁵ lɪk̚² t͡sɔːŋ³³/

/ni̯ɛn³⁵ t͡ɕʰiŋ⁵⁵ li⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂu̯ɑŋ⁵¹/

/niːn²¹ hɪŋ⁵⁵ lɪk̚² t͡sɔːŋ³³/


企喺城樓睇馬打交

企喺城楼睇马打交
企响城樓睇馬打交

to stand on the city gate tower to watch horses fighting

kei⁵ hai² sing⁴ lau⁴ tai² maa⁵ daa² gaau¹

/kʰei̯¹³ hɐi̯³⁵ sɪŋ²¹ lɐu̯²¹ tʰɐi̯³⁵ maː¹³ taː³⁵ kaːu̯⁵⁵/

(Cantonese, figuratively) to watch in safety while others fight, then reaping the spoils when both sides suffer.


袋袋平安

/tɔːi̯²² tɔːi̯²² pʰɪŋ²¹ ɔːn⁵⁵/

/tɔːi̯²² tɔːi̯²² pʰɪŋ²¹ ɔːn⁵⁵/

Homophonic pun on 代代平安 (doi⁶ doi⁶ ping⁴ on¹, literally “wish every generation safe and sound”).

(Cantonese) to keep something safe after receiving it, especially money


欽此

/t͡ɕʰin⁵⁵ t͡sʰz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jɐm⁵⁵ t͡sʰiː³⁵/

/t͡ɕʰin⁵⁵ t͡sʰz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jɐm⁵⁵ t͡sʰiː³⁵/

(historical) A phrase marking the end of an edict.


奉天承運

ㄈㄥˋ ㄊㄧㄢ ㄔㄥˊ ㄩㄣˋ

фэнтяньчэнъюнь

/fɤŋ⁵¹ tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɤŋ³⁵ yn⁵¹/

/fʊŋ²² tʰiːn⁵⁵ sɪŋ²¹ wɐn²²/

/fɤŋ⁵¹ tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɤŋ³⁵ yn⁵¹/

/fʊŋ²² tʰiːn⁵⁵ sɪŋ²¹ wɐn²²/

The Emperor, by the Grace of Heaven, decrees that…

fèngtiānchéngyùn huángdì, zhào yuē......

奉天承運皇帝，詔曰……

奉天承运皇帝，诏曰……

(historical) by the Grace of God (used at the beginning of an edict)


鬥私批修

ㄉㄡˇ ㄙ ㄆㄧ ㄒㄧㄡ

/toʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ sz̩⁵⁵ pʰi⁵⁵ ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵/

/tɐu̯³³ siː⁵⁵ pʰɐi̯⁵⁵ sɐu̯⁵⁵/

/toʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ sz̩⁵⁵ pʰi⁵⁵ ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵/

/tɐu̯³³ siː⁵⁵ pʰɐi̯⁵⁵ sɐu̯⁵⁵/

(Maoism) to fight selfishness and criticize revisionism


人所共知

ㄖㄣˊ ㄙㄨㄛˇ ㄍㄨㄥˋ ㄓ

жэньсогунчжи

/ʐən³⁵ su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ kʊŋ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/jɐn²¹ sɔː³⁵ kʊŋ²² t͡siː⁵⁵/

/ʐən³⁵ su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ kʊŋ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/jɐn²¹ sɔː³⁵ kʊŋ²² t͡siː⁵⁵/

to be known by everyone; to be common knowledge


無啦啦，多笪𤶸

无啦啦，多笪𤶸
無啦啦，多笪瘌
無啦啦，多撻瘌
無喇喇，多撻瘌

/mou̯²¹ laː⁵⁵ laː⁵⁵ tɔː⁵⁵ taːt̚³ laː⁵⁵/

/mou̯²¹ laː⁵⁵ laː⁵⁵ tɔː⁵⁵ taːt̚³ laː⁵⁵/

無啦啦，整笪𤶸 無啦啦，整笪𤶸#Chinese

无啦啦，整笪𤶸 无啦啦，整笪𤶸#Chinese

Synonym of 無啦啦，整笪𤶸／无啦啦，整笪𤶸


無啦啦，整笪𤶸

无啦啦，整笪𤶸
無啦啦，整笪瘌
無啦啦，整撻瘌
無喇喇，整撻瘌

/mou̯²¹ laː⁵⁵ laː⁵⁵ t͡sɪŋ³⁵ taːt̚³ laː⁵⁵/

(Cantonese) to do unnecessary or useless things; to ask for trouble


未學行，先學走

/mei̯²² hɔːk̚² haːŋ²¹ siːn⁵⁵ hɔːk̚² t͡sɐu̯³⁵/

learn to run before one can walk
learn to walk before one can run

(Cantonese) to learn to run before one can walk


吂學行，先學走

/maŋ¹¹ hok̚⁵ haŋ¹¹ si̯en²⁴⁻¹¹ hok̚⁵ t͡seu̯³¹/

(Hakka) to learn to run before one can walk


未曾學行先學飛

/be³³⁻¹¹ t͡siɪŋ²⁴⁻¹¹ o(ʔ)⁴⁻¹¹ kiã²⁴ siɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ o(ʔ)⁴⁻¹¹ pe⁴⁴/

/be²²⁻²¹ t͡siɪŋ²⁴⁻²² o(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ kiã²⁴ siɪŋ⁴⁴⁻²² o(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ pe⁴⁴/

/bue³³⁻²¹ t͡siɪŋ²³⁻³³ ɤ(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ kiã²³ siɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ ɤ(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ pue⁴⁴/

(Southern Min) to learn to run before one can walk


雞碎咁多

/kɐi̯⁵⁵ sɵy̯³³ kɐm³³ tɔː⁵⁵/

/kɐi̯⁵⁵ sɵy̯³³ kɐm³³ tɔː⁵⁵/


山長水遠

ㄕㄢ ㄔㄤˊ ㄕㄨㄟˇ ㄩㄢˇ

шаньчаншуйюань

/ʂän⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ³⁵ ʂu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ɥɛn²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/saːn⁵⁵ t͡sʰœːŋ²¹ sɵy̯³⁵ jyːn¹³/

/saːn⁵⁵ t͡sʰœːŋ²¹ sɵy̯³⁵ jyːn¹³/


貼錯門神

/tʰiːp̚³ t͡sʰɔː³³ muːn²¹ sɐn²¹/

/tʰiːp̚³ t͡sʰɔː³³ muːn²¹ sɐn²¹/

(Cantonese, Liuzhou Mandarin, of two people) to not get along with each other; to be at odds with each other; to be nasty or hostile with each other


獨闢蹊徑

ㄉㄨˊ ㄆㄧˋ ㄒㄧ ㄐㄧㄥˋ

/tu³⁵ pʰi⁵¹ ɕi⁵⁵ t͡ɕiŋ⁵¹/

/tʊk̚² pʰɪk̚⁵ hɐi̯²¹ kɪŋ³³/

/tu³⁵ pʰi⁵¹ ɕi⁵⁵ t͡ɕiŋ⁵¹/

/tʊk̚² pʰɪk̚⁵ hɐi̯²¹ kɪŋ³³/

to blaze a trail; to pioneer a new approach


所到之處

ㄙㄨㄛˇ ㄉㄠˋ ㄓ ㄔㄨˋ

/su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ tɑʊ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵¹/

/sɔː³⁵ tou̯³³ t͡siː⁵⁵ t͡sʰyː³³/

/su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ tɑʊ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵¹/

/sɔː³⁵ tou̯³³ t͡siː⁵⁵ t͡sʰyː³³/


單人匹馬

ㄉㄢ ㄖㄣˊ ㄆㄧˇ ㄇㄚˇ

даньжэньпима

/tän⁵⁵ ʐən³⁵ pʰi²¹⁴⁻³⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/taːn⁵⁵ jɐn²¹ pʰɐt̚⁵ maː¹³/

/tän⁵⁵ ʐən³⁵ pʰi²¹⁴⁻³⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/taːn⁵⁵ jɐn²¹ pʰɐt̚⁵ maː¹³/


有行無市

ㄧㄡˇ ㄏㄤˊ ㄨˊ ㄕˋ

/joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ xɑŋ³⁵ u³⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

/joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ xɑŋ³⁵ u³⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹/


睡眼惺忪

ㄕㄨㄟˋ ㄧㄢˇ ㄒㄧㄥ ㄙㄨㄥ

шуйяньсинсун

/ʂu̯eɪ̯⁵¹ jɛn²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕiŋ⁵⁵ sʊŋ⁵⁵/

/ʂu̯eɪ̯⁵¹ jɛn²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕiŋ⁵⁵ sʊŋ⁵⁵/

drowsy-eyed (describing the state when a person just wakes up)


長袖善舞

ㄔㄤˊ ㄒㄧㄡˋ ㄕㄢˋ ㄨˇ

/ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ³⁵ ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂän⁵¹ u²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰœːŋ²¹ t͡sɐu̯²² siːn²² mou̯¹³/

/ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ³⁵ ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂän⁵¹ u²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰœːŋ²¹ t͡sɐu̯²² siːn²² mou̯¹³/

There was a saying that “Long sleeves make a good dance, more money makes better business.” This means that if you have more resources, you can do things easier.

Bǐyàn yuē: “Cháng xiù shàn wǔ, duō qián shàn gǔ.” Cǐ yán duō zī zhī yì wèi gōng yě.

鄙諺曰：「長袖善舞，多錢善賈。」此言多資之易為工也。

鄙谚曰：「长袖善舞，多钱善贾。」此言多资之易为工也。

to have tricks up one’s sleeve and be likely to succeed

(of businesspeople or politicians) be able to make good use of one's connections


捉蟲入屎窟

to put an insect/worm into someone's asshole

/t͡sʊk̚⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ jɐp̚² siː³⁵ fɐt̚⁵/

/t͡sʊk̚⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ jɐp̚² siː³⁵ fɐt̚⁵/

shoot oneself in the foot
shoot oneself in the foot

(Cantonese) to make trouble for oneself; to shoot oneself in the foot


老虎都打死幾隻

/lou̯¹³ fuː³⁵ tou̯⁵⁵ taː³⁵ sei̯³⁵ kei̯³⁵ t͡sɛːk̚³/


了錢生理無人做，刣頭生理有人做

了錢生理無人做，刣頭生理有人做

了钱生理无人做，刣头生理有人做

/liau⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ t͡sĩ²³ siɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ li⁴¹ bɤ²³⁻³³ laŋ²³⁻³³ t͡sɤ²¹ tʰai²³⁻³³ tʰau²³ siɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ li⁴¹ u³³⁻²¹ laŋ²³⁻³³ t͡sɤ²¹/

/liau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡sĩ²⁴ siɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ li⁵³ bo²⁴⁻¹¹ laŋ²⁴⁻¹¹ t͡so¹¹ tʰai²⁴⁻¹¹ tʰau²⁴ siɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ li⁵³ u³³⁻¹¹ laŋ²⁴⁻¹¹ t͡so¹¹/

(Southern Min, sarcastic) People are not willing to do business that does not make profit, but are willing to do business involving murder. (Used to satirize businesspeople who use evil means to profiteer)


悲從中來

ㄅㄟ ㄘㄨㄥˊ ㄓㄨㄥ ㄌㄞˊ

бэйцунчжунлай

/peɪ̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵ laɪ̯³⁵/

/pei̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ t͡sʊŋ⁵⁵ lɔːi̯²¹/

/peɪ̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵ laɪ̯³⁵/

/pei̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ t͡sʊŋ⁵⁵ lɔːi̯²¹/

bottom of one's heart
bottom of one's heart

to feel sadness from the bottom of one's heart; to feel sorrow emanate from one's heart


一個招牌砸落嚟都砸死幾件

一個招牌砸落嚟都砸死幾件

一个招牌砸落嚟都砸死几件

even an advertisement sign falling down would kill several of them

jat¹ go³ ziu¹ paai⁴ zaak⁶ lok⁶ lei⁴ dou¹ zaak⁶ sei² gei² gin⁶

jat¹ go³ ziu¹ paai⁴ zaak⁶ lok⁶ lai⁴ dou¹ zaak⁶ sei² gei² gin⁶

yāt go jīu pàaih jaahk lohk lèih dōu jaahk séi géi gihn

yāt go jīu pàaih jaahk lohk làih dōu jaahk séi géi gihn

jat⁷ go³ dziu¹ paai⁴ dzaak⁹ lok⁹ lei⁴ dou¹ dzaak⁹ sei² gei² gin⁶

jat⁷ go³ dziu¹ paai⁴ dzaak⁹ lok⁹ lai⁴ dou¹ dzaak⁹ sei² gei² gin⁶

yed¹ go³ jiu¹ pai⁴ zag⁶ log⁶ léi⁴ dou¹ zag⁶ séi² géi² gin⁶

yed¹ go³ jiu¹ pai⁴ zag⁶ log⁶ lei⁴ dou¹ zag⁶ séi² géi² gin⁶

/jɐt̚⁵ kɔː³³ t͡siːu̯⁵⁵ pʰaːi̯²¹ t͡saːk̚² lɔːk̚² lei̯²¹ tou̯⁵⁵ t͡saːk̚² sei̯³⁵ kei̯³⁵ kiːn²²/

/jɐt̚⁵ kɔː³³ t͡siːu̯⁵⁵ pʰaːi̯²¹ t͡saːk̚² lɔːk̚² lɐi̯²¹ tou̯⁵⁵ t͡saːk̚² sei̯³⁵ kei̯³⁵ kiːn²²/

(Cantonese, of people) a dime a dozen; ten a penny


老人變細蚊

/lou̯¹³ jɐn²¹ piːn³³ sɐi̯³³ mɐn⁵⁵/

/lou̯¹³ jɐn²¹ piːn³³ sɐi̯³³ mɐn⁵⁵/

(Cantonese) an elderly person acts like a child


妻離子散

ㄑㄧ ㄌㄧˊ ㄗˇ ㄙㄢˋ

/t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵ li³⁵ t͡sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ sän⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɐi̯⁵⁵ lei̯²¹ t͡siː³⁵ saːn³³/

/t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵ li³⁵ t͡sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ sän⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɐi̯⁵⁵ lei̯²¹ t͡siː³⁵ saːn³³/

The rulers of those States rob their people of their time, so that they cannot plough and weed their fields, in order to support their parents. Their parents suffer from cold and hunger. Brothers, wives, and children are separated and scattered abroad. Those rulers, as it were, drive their people into pit-falls, or drown them. Your Majesty will go to punish them. In such a case, who will oppose your Majesty?

Mencius, c. 4ᵗʰ century BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

Bǐ duó qí mín shí, shǐ bùdé gēng nòu yǐ yǎng qí fùmǔ, fùmǔ dòng'è, xiōngdì qīzǐ lísàn. Bǐ xiàn nì qí mín, wáng wǎng ér zhēng zhī, fú shuí yǔ wáng dí?

彼奪其民時，使不得耕耨以養其父母，父母凍餓，兄弟妻子離散。彼陷溺其民，王往而征之，夫誰與王敵？

彼夺其民时，使不得耕耨以养其父母，父母冻饿，兄弟妻子离散。彼陷溺其民，王往而征之，夫谁与王敌？


貨不對板

ㄏㄨㄛˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄉㄨㄟˋ ㄅㄢˇ

/xu̯ɔ⁵¹ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ tu̯eɪ̯⁵¹ pän²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/fɔː³³ paːt̚⁵ tɵy̯³³ paːn²²⁻³⁵/

/xu̯ɔ⁵¹ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ tu̯eɪ̯⁵¹ pän²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/fɔː³³ paːt̚⁵ tɵy̯³³ paːn²²⁻³⁵/

货不对板
貨不對版
貨不對辦

the goods do not match their descriptions


入不敷支

ㄖㄨˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄈㄨ ㄓ

/ʐu⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ fu⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/jɐp̚² pɐt̚⁵ fuː⁵⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵/

/ʐu⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ fu⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/jɐp̚² pɐt̚⁵ fuː⁵⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵/

入不敷出 入不敷出#Chinese

Synonym of 入不敷出 (rùbùfūchū, “unable to make ends meet; income cannot cover expenditure; to spend more than one earns”)


與時並進

ㄩˇ ㄕˊ ㄅㄧㄥˋ ㄐㄧㄣˋ

юйшибинцзинь

/y²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵ piŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕin⁵¹/

/jyː¹³ siː²¹ pɪŋ²² t͡sɵn³³/

/y²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵ piŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕin⁵¹/

/jyː¹³ siː²¹ pɪŋ²² t͡sɵn³³/

與時俱進 與時俱進#Chinese

与时俱进 与时俱进#Chinese

Synonym of 與時俱進／与时俱进 (yǔshíjùjìn, “to move with the times; to keep abreast of current developments”)


大安旨意

/taːi̯²² ɔːn⁵⁵ t͡siː³⁵ jiː³³/

/taːi̯²² ɔːn⁵⁵ t͡siː³⁵ jiː³³/

(Cantonese) to have a false sense of security; to assume that there is no risk or danger


誇誇其談

ㄎㄨㄚ ㄎㄨㄚ ㄑㄧˊ ㄊㄢˊ

куакуацитань

/kʰu̯ä⁵⁵ kʰu̯ä⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ tʰän³⁵/

/kʷʰaː⁵⁵ kʷʰaː⁵⁵ kʰei̯²¹ tʰaːm²¹/

/kʰu̯ä⁵⁵ kʰu̯ä⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ tʰän³⁵/

/kʷʰaː⁵⁵ kʷʰaː⁵⁵ kʰei̯²¹ tʰaːm²¹/


汲汲營營

ㄐㄧˊ ㄐㄧˊ ㄧㄥˊ ㄧㄥˊ

/t͡ɕi³⁵ t͡ɕi³⁵ iŋ³⁵ iŋ³⁵/

/kʰɐp̚⁵ kʰɐp̚⁵ jɪŋ²¹ jɪŋ²¹/

/t͡ɕi³⁵ t͡ɕi³⁵ iŋ³⁵ iŋ³⁵/

/kʰɐp̚⁵ kʰɐp̚⁵ jɪŋ²¹ jɪŋ²¹/

to be continuously busy pursuing fame and fortune

(Taiwan, Internet slang, neologism) Alternative form of 雞雞硬硬／鸡鸡硬硬 (jījī yìng yìng, “having a boner”)


行得正企得正

/haːŋ²¹ tɐk̚⁵ t͡sɛːŋ³³ kʰei̯¹³ tɐk̚⁵ t͡sɛːŋ³³/

(Cantonese) to act in a proper manner; to behave beyond reproach


皇帝唔急太監急

/wɔːŋ²¹ tɐi̯³³ m̩²¹ kɐp̚⁵ tʰaːi̯³³ kaːm³³ kɐp̚⁵/

(figurative) The person involved is calm and collected, but observers are very worried.


雞口牛後

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (雞口牛後):
* → Korean: 계구우후(雞口牛後) (gyeguuhu)

ㄐㄧ ㄎㄡˇ ㄋㄧㄡˊ ㄏㄡˋ

/t͡ɕi⁵⁵ kʰoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ni̯oʊ̯³⁵ xoʊ̯⁵¹/

/t͡ɕi⁵⁵ kʰoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ni̯oʊ̯³⁵ xoʊ̯⁵¹/

寧為雞口，無為牛後 寧為雞口，無為牛後#Chinese

宁为鸡口，无为牛后 宁为鸡口，无为牛后#Chinese

Synonym of 寧為雞口，無為牛後／宁为鸡口，无为牛后 (níng wéi jīkǒu, wú wéi niúhòu)


互不相讓

ㄏㄨˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄖㄤˋ

/xu⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʐɑŋ⁵¹/

/xu⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʐɑŋ⁵¹/


一句起，兩句止

start from first sentence and stop at second sentence

/jɐt̚⁵ kɵy̯³³ hei̯³⁵ lœːŋ¹³ kɵy̯³³ t͡siː³⁵/

(Cantonese) unable to maintain a long conversation


一枝竹篙壓倒一船人

一枝竹篙压倒一船人
一枝竹篙摃倒一船人
一枝竹篙壓倒一船載

/t͡sit̚⁴⁻³² ki⁴⁴⁻³³ tiɪk̚³²⁻⁴ kɤ⁴⁴ a(ʔ)³²⁻⁴¹ tɤ⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ t͡sit̚⁴⁻³² t͡sun²³⁻³³ laŋ²³/

/t͡sit̚⁴⁻³² ki⁴⁴⁻³³ tiɪk̚³²⁻⁴ ko⁴⁴ a(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ to⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡sit̚⁴⁻³² t͡sun²⁴⁻¹¹ laŋ²⁴/

/t͡sit̚⁴⁻³² ki⁴⁴⁻²² tiɪk̚³²⁻⁴ ko⁴⁴ a(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ to⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡sit̚⁴⁻³² t͡sun²⁴⁻²² laŋ²⁴/

tar everyone with the same brush
tar with the same brush

(Southern Min) to tar everyone with the same brush


無彼號尻川，想欲食彼號瀉藥

head

無彼號尻川，想欲食彼號瀉藥

无彼号尻川，想欲食彼号泻药
無彼種尻川，想欲食彼種瀉藥

want to take that kind of laxative without such a kind of buttocks

/bo²⁴⁻¹¹ hit̚³²⁻⁴ lo³³⁻¹¹ kʰa⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰŋ̍⁴⁴ siũ³³⁻¹¹ be(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻¹¹ hit̚³²⁻⁴ lo³³⁻¹¹ sia¹¹⁻⁵³ ioʔ⁴/

/bɤ²³⁻³³ hit̚³²⁻⁴ lɤ³³⁻²¹ kʰa⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰŋ̍⁴⁴ siũ³³⁻²¹ be(ʔ)³²⁻⁴¹ t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ hit̚³²⁻⁴ lɤ³³⁻²¹ sia²¹⁻⁴¹ iɤʔ⁴/

/bo²⁴⁻²² hit̚³²⁻⁴ lo²²⁻²¹ kʰa⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sʰŋ̍⁴⁴ siũ²²⁻²¹ be(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ hit̚³²⁻⁴ lo²²⁻²¹ sia²¹⁻⁵³ ioʔ⁴/

(Southern Min) to want to do something without the ability

冇咁大個頭，唔好戴咁大頂帽／冇咁大个头，唔好戴咁大顶帽

mou5 gam3 daai6 go3 tau4, m4 hou2 daai3 gam3 daai6 deng2 mou6-2


嚼完鬆

/t͡siːu̯²² jyːn²¹ sʊŋ⁵⁵/

/t͡siːu̯²² jyːn²¹ sʊŋ⁵⁵/

(Cantonese) to hump and dump; to smash and dash


病榻纏綿

ㄅㄧㄥˋ ㄊㄚˋ ㄔㄢˊ ㄇㄧㄢˊ

бинтачаньмянь

/piŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰä⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰän³⁵ mi̯ɛn³⁵/

/piŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰä⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰän³⁵ mi̯ɛn³⁵/

bedridden (from illness) for a long time


其樂融融

ㄑㄧˊ ㄌㄜˋ ㄖㄨㄥˊ ㄖㄨㄥˊ

/t͡ɕʰi³⁵ lɤ⁵¹ ʐʊŋ³⁵ ʐʊŋ³⁵/

/kʰei̯²¹ lɔːk̚² jʊŋ²¹ jʊŋ²¹/

/t͡ɕʰi³⁵ lɤ⁵¹ ʐʊŋ³⁵ ʐʊŋ³⁵/

/kʰei̯²¹ lɔːk̚² jʊŋ²¹ jʊŋ²¹/

From Zuo Zhuan. Duke Zhuang of Zheng had exiled his mother and swore that he shall not see her until he "reaches the yellow spring (黃泉)", i.e. until he dies. But then he repented this. An officer, Ying Kao Shu, had a solution (《左傳·隱公元年》)

"Why should you be distressed about that?" said the officer. "If you dig into the earth to the yellow springs, and then make a subterranean passage, where you can meet each other, who can say that your oath is not fulfilled?" The duke followed this suggestion; and as he entered the passage sang, "This great tunnel, within, With joy doth run." When his mother came out, she sang, "This great tunnel, without, The joy flies about." After this, they were mother and son as before.

Commentary of Zuo, c. 4ᵗʰ century BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

Duì yuē: “Jūn hé huàn yān? Ruò què dì jí quán, suì ér xiàngjiàn, qí shéi yuē bùrán?” Gōng cóng zhī. Gōng rù ér fù: “Dà suì zhī zhōng, qí lè yě róngróng!” Jiāng chū ér fù: “Dà suì zhī wài, qí lè yě yìyì!” Suì wéi mǔzǐ rú chū.

對曰：「君何患焉？若闕地及泉，隧而相見，其誰曰不然？」公從之。公入而賦：「大隧之中，其樂也融融！」姜出而賦：「大隧之外，其樂也洩洩！」遂為母子如初。

对曰：「君何患焉？若阙地及泉，隧而相见，其谁曰不然？」公从之。公入而赋：「大隧之中，其乐也融融！」姜出而赋：「大隧之外，其乐也泄泄！」遂为母子如初。


非異人任

ㄈㄟ ㄧˋ ㄖㄣˊ ㄖㄣˋ

фэйижэньжэнь

fɛjižɛnʹžɛnʹ

/feɪ̯⁵⁵ i⁵¹ ʐən³⁵ ʐən⁵¹/

/fei̯⁵⁵ jiː²² jɐn²¹ jɐm²²/

/feɪ̯⁵⁵ i⁵¹ ʐən³⁵ ʐən⁵¹/

/fei̯⁵⁵ jiː²² jɐn²¹ jɐm²²/


神又係……，鬼又係……

The god is someone, the demon is someone too

/sɐn²¹ jɐu̯²² hɐi̯²² kʷɐi̯³⁵ jɐu̯²² hɐi̯²²/

(Cantonese) One is both the hero and the villain. (Used to describe two-faced people)

(Cantonese) Used when someone says self-contradictory things.


一親芳澤

ㄧ ㄑㄧㄣ ㄈㄤ ㄗㄜˊ

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ t͡ɕʰin⁵⁵ fɑŋ⁵⁵ t͡sɤ³⁵/

/jɐt̚⁵ t͡sʰɐn⁵⁵ fɔːŋ⁵⁵ t͡saːk̚²/

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ t͡ɕʰin⁵⁵ fɑŋ⁵⁵ t͡sɤ³⁵/

/jɐt̚⁵ t͡sʰɐn⁵⁵ fɔːŋ⁵⁵ t͡saːk̚²/

to get close to; to get on intimate terms with (someone or something that one likes)


毀家紓難

ㄏㄨㄟˇ ㄐㄧㄚ ㄕㄨ ㄋㄢˋ

хуэйцзяшунань

/xu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕi̯ä⁵⁵ ʂu⁵⁵ nän⁵¹/

/wɐi̯³⁵ kaː⁵⁵ syː⁵⁵ naːn²¹/

/xu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕi̯ä⁵⁵ ʂu⁵⁵ nän⁵¹/

/wɐi̯³⁵ kaː⁵⁵ syː⁵⁵ naːn²¹/

lang

(《左傳·莊公三十年》)

(《左傳·莊公三十年》)

In autumn, Dou Ban (w:zh:鬬班), duke of Shen, put Ziyuan (w:zh:子元) to death. Dou Guwutu (w:zh:鬬㝅於菟) became chief minister, and emptied his house of everything to alleviate the difficulties of the State.

Qiū, Shēn Gōng Dǒu Bān shā Zǐyuán, Dǒu Gǔwūtú wéi lìngyǐn, zì huǐ qí jiā yǐ shū Chǔ guó zhī nàn.

秋，申公鬭班殺子元，鬭谷於菟爲令尹，自毀其家以紓楚國之難。

秋，申公鬭班杀子元，鬭谷於菟为令尹，自毁其家以纾楚国之难。

sacrifice one's family wealth to save the state


人如其名

ㄖㄣˊ ㄖㄨˊ ㄑㄧˊ ㄇㄧㄥˊ

/ʐən³⁵ ʐu³⁵ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ miŋ³⁵/

/ʐən³⁵ ʐu³⁵ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ miŋ³⁵/

to live up to one's name; true to one's name


蠨蛸滿堂

ㄒㄧㄠ ㄕㄠ ㄇㄢˇ ㄊㄤˊ

сяошаоманьтан

/ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵⁵ ʂɑʊ̯⁵⁵ män²¹⁴⁻²¹ tʰɑŋ³⁵/

/ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵⁵ ʂɑʊ̯⁵⁵ män²¹⁴⁻²¹ tʰɑŋ³⁵/


蝸步龜移

ㄨㄛ ㄅㄨˋ ㄍㄨㄟ ㄧˊ

ㄍㄨㄚ ㄅㄨˋ ㄍㄨㄟ ㄧˊ

/wɔ⁵⁵ pu⁵¹ ku̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ i³⁵/

/ku̯ä⁵⁵ pu⁵¹ ku̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ i³⁵/

/wɔ⁵⁵ pu⁵¹ ku̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ i³⁵/

/ku̯ä⁵⁵ pu⁵¹ ku̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ i³⁵/


不棄糟糠

ㄅㄨˋ ㄑㄧˋ ㄗㄠ ㄎㄤ

/pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹ t͡sɑʊ̯⁵⁵ kʰɑŋ⁵⁵/

/pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹ t͡sɑʊ̯⁵⁵ kʰɑŋ⁵⁵/

糟糠之妻不下堂 糟糠之妻不下堂#Chinese

Synonym of 糟糠之妻不下堂 (zāokāng zhī qī bù xiàtáng).


與狐謀皮

ㄩˇ ㄏㄨˊ ㄇㄡˊ ㄆㄧˊ

/y²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu³⁵ moʊ̯³⁵ pʰi³⁵/

/jyː¹³ wuː²¹ mɐu̯²¹ pʰei̯²¹/

/y²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu³⁵ moʊ̯³⁵ pʰi³⁵/

/jyː¹³ wuː²¹ mɐu̯²¹ pʰei̯²¹/

Quoted from Zuo Qiuming, the author of Master Zuo's Spring and Autumn Annals

There was a man from Zhou who loved fur coats and delicacies. He would ask foxes for their skin for splendid fur coats, and ask lambs for its meat to make a feast. But before he finished saying this, the foxes fled to under mountains following each other, and the lambs hid themselves deep in forests whining. As a results, that man from Zhou could never make a coat even after ten years, and could never have a feast even after five years. Why? It was because he discussed with the wrong person.

Taiping Yulan (Readings of the Taiping Era), 977 – 983 CE

Zhōu rén yǒu ài qiú ér hǎo zhēnxiū, yù wèi qiānjīn zhī qiú ér yǔ hú móu qí pí, yù jù shàoláo zhī zhēn ér yǔ yáng móu qí xiū. Yán wèi zú, hú xiàng lǜ táo yú zhòng qiū zhīxià, yáng xiàng hū cáng yú shēnlín zhī zhōng. Gù zhōu rén shí nián bù zhì yī qiú, wǔ nián bù jù yī láo. Hézhě? Zhōu rén zhī móu shī zhī yǐ.

周人有愛裘而好珍羞，欲為千金之裘而與狐謀其皮，欲具少牢之珍而與羊謀其羞。言未卒，狐相率逃於重丘之下，羊相呼藏於深林之中。故周人十年不制一裘，五年不具一牢。何者？周人之謀失之矣。

周人有爱裘而好珍羞，欲为千金之裘而与狐谋其皮，欲具少牢之珍而与羊谋其羞。言未卒，狐相率逃于重丘之下，羊相呼藏于深林之中。故周人十年不制一裘，五年不具一牢。何者？周人之谋失之矣。

與虎謀皮 與虎謀皮#Chinese

与虎谋皮 与虎谋皮#Chinese


口同鼻拗

/hɐu̯³⁵ tʰʊŋ²¹ pei̯²² aːu̯³³/

/hɐu̯³⁵ tʰʊŋ²¹ pei̯²² aːu̯³³/

(Cantonese) to have unnecessary strife within a group of people

(Cantonese) to have a pointless argument because neither side can prove their point


哀爸叫母

/ai⁴⁴⁻³³ pe³³⁻¹¹ kio¹¹⁻⁵³ bu⁵³/

/ai⁴⁴⁻³³ pe³³⁻²¹ kiɤ²¹⁻⁴¹ bu⁴¹/

/ai⁴⁴⁻³³ pe³³⁻¹¹ kio¹¹⁻⁵³ bo⁵³/

/ai⁴⁴⁻³³ pe³³⁻²¹ kiɤ²¹⁻⁴¹ bɤ⁴¹/

/ai⁴⁴⁻³³ pe³³⁻¹¹ kio¹¹⁻⁵³ bu⁵³/

/ai⁴⁴⁻³³ pe³³⁻²¹ kiɤ²¹⁻⁴¹ bu⁴¹/

/ai⁴⁴⁻³³ pe³³⁻¹¹ kio¹¹⁻⁵³ bo⁵³/

/ai⁴⁴⁻³³ pe³³⁻²¹ kiɤ²¹⁻⁴¹ bɤ⁴¹/

(Hokkien, vulgar) to be full of complaints; to complain to high heaven; to complain bitterly


懵到上心口

/mʊŋ³⁵ tou̯³³ sœːŋ¹³ sɐm⁵⁵ hɐu̯³⁵/

/mʊŋ³⁵ tou̯³³ sœːŋ¹³ sɐm⁵⁵ hɐu̯³⁵/

(Cantonese) to be extremely muddleheaded or foolish


飽到上心口

/paːu̯³⁵ tou̯³³ sœːŋ¹³ sɐm⁵⁵ hɐu̯³⁵/

/paːu̯³⁵ tou̯³³ sœːŋ¹³ sɐm⁵⁵ hɐu̯³⁵/

(Cantonese) to be very full (after a meal)


出神入化

ㄔㄨ ㄕㄣˊ ㄖㄨˋ ㄏㄨㄚˋ

/ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵⁵ ʂən³⁵ ʐu⁵¹⁻⁵³ xu̯ä⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɵt̚⁵ sɐn²¹ jɐp̚² faː³³/

/ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵⁵ ʂən³⁵ ʐu⁵¹⁻⁵³ xu̯ä⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɵt̚⁵ sɐn²¹ jɐp̚² faː³³/


香車寶馬

ㄒㄧㄤ ㄔㄜ ㄅㄠˇ ㄇㄚˇ

/ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵⁵ pɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/hœːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰɛː⁵⁵ pou̯³⁵ maː¹³/

/hœːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰɛː⁵⁵ pou̯³⁵ maː¹³/

寶馬香車 寶馬香車#Chinese

宝马香车 宝马香车#Chinese

Alternative form of 寶馬香車／宝马香车 (bǎomǎ xiāngchē, “lavishly decorated carriages and horses”)


寶馬香車

ㄅㄠˇ ㄇㄚˇ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄔㄜ

/pɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵⁵/

/pou̯³⁵ maː¹³ hœːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰɛː⁵⁵/

/pɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵⁵/

/pou̯³⁵ maː¹³ hœːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰɛː⁵⁵/


畫黛彎蛾

ㄏㄨㄚˋ ㄉㄞˋ ㄨㄢ ㄜˊ

/xu̯ä⁵¹⁻⁵³ taɪ̯⁵¹ wän⁵⁵ ˀɤ³⁵/

/xu̯ä⁵¹⁻⁵³ taɪ̯⁵¹ wän⁵⁵ ˀɤ³⁵/

This Mr. Kong acceded to, and accordingly saw Miss Jiaonuo come out with a lovely girl―her black eyebrows beautifully arched, and her tiny feet encased in phoenix-shaped shoes―as like one another as they well could be.

1740, Pu Songling, 聊齋志異 (Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio)

Shēng rú qí jiào, guǒ jiàn Jiāonuó xié lì rén lái, huàdàiwān'é, lián gōu cù fèng, yǔ Jiāonuó xiàng bózhòng yě.

生如其教，果見嬌娜偕麗人來，畫黛彎蛾，蓮鉤蹴鳳，與嬌娜相伯仲也。

生如其教，果见娇娜偕丽人来，画黛弯蛾，莲钩蹴凤，与娇娜相伯仲也。

(of a woman) having thin and curved eyebrows


兵凶戰危

ㄅㄧㄥ ㄒㄩㄥ ㄓㄢˋ ㄨㄟ

ㄅㄧㄥ ㄒㄩㄥ ㄓㄢˋ ㄨㄟˊ

бинсюнчжаньвэй

/piŋ⁵⁵ ɕi̯ʊŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂän⁵¹ weɪ̯⁵⁵/

/piŋ⁵⁵ ɕi̯ʊŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂän⁵¹ weɪ̯³⁵/

/piŋ⁵⁵ ɕi̯ʊŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂän⁵¹ weɪ̯⁵⁵/

/piŋ⁵⁵ ɕi̯ʊŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂän⁵¹ weɪ̯³⁵/


逢凶化吉

ㄈㄥˊ ㄒㄩㄥ ㄏㄨㄚˋ ㄐㄧˊ

фэнсюнхуацзи

/fɤŋ³⁵ ɕi̯ʊŋ⁵⁵ xu̯ä⁵¹ t͡ɕi³⁵/

/fʊŋ²¹ hʊŋ⁵⁵ faː³³ kɐt̚⁵/

/fɤŋ³⁵ ɕi̯ʊŋ⁵⁵ xu̯ä⁵¹ t͡ɕi³⁵/

/fʊŋ²¹ hʊŋ⁵⁵ faː³³ kɐt̚⁵/

to get through a dangerous crisis; to land on one's feet


有眼睇

/jɐu̯¹³ ŋaːn¹³ tʰɐi̯³⁵/

/jɐu̯¹³ ŋaːn¹³ tʰɐi̯³⁵/


有紋有路

/jɐu̯¹³ mɐn²¹ jɐu̯¹³ lou̯²²/

/jɐu̯¹³ mɐn²¹ jɐu̯¹³ lou̯²²/

佢講嘢有紋有路。

佢讲嘢有纹有路。

(Cantonese) to be clear and logical; to be orderly; to be systematic


反其道而行

ㄈㄢˇ ㄑㄧˊ ㄉㄠˋ ㄦˊ ㄒㄧㄥˊ

фань ци дао эр син

/fän²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ tɑʊ̯⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ ɕiŋ³⁵/

/faːn³⁵ kʰei̯²¹ tou̯²² jiː²¹ hɐŋ²¹/

/fän²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ tɑʊ̯⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ ɕiŋ³⁵/

/faːn³⁵ kʰei̯²¹ tou̯²² jiː²¹ hɐŋ²¹/

to do just the opposite; to act in a diametrically opposite way


無私無畏

/u³⁵ sz̩⁵⁵ u³⁵ weɪ̯⁵¹/

/u³⁵ sz̩⁵⁵ u³⁵ weɪ̯⁵¹/


三頭唔埋兩日

/saːm⁵⁵ tʰɐu̯²¹ m̩²¹ maːi̯²¹ lœːŋ¹³ jɐt̚²/


好狗唔攔路

/hou̯³⁵ kɐu̯³⁵ m̩²¹ laːn²¹ lou̯²²/

/hou̯³⁵ kɐu̯³⁵ m̩²¹ laːn²¹ lou̯²²/

out of someone's way
out of someone's way

(Cantonese, derogatory) out of someone's way


自家屙屎自家食

one has shitted and now eats the shit oneself

/t͡sʰit̚² ka²⁴⁻¹¹ o²⁴ sɨ³¹ t͡sʰit̚² ka²⁴⁻¹¹ sɨt̚⁵/

/t͡sʰit̚⁵ ka²⁴⁻¹¹ o²⁴ sɨ³¹ t͡sʰit̚⁵ ka²⁴⁻¹¹ sɨt̚⁵/

/t͡sʰz̩⁵³ ka⁴⁴ o⁴⁴⁻³⁵ sz̩³¹ t͡sʰz̩⁵³ ka⁴⁴ sət̚⁵/

made one's bed and lie in it
make one's bed and lie in it

(Hakka, mildly vulgar, derogatory) to reap what one sows; to have made one's bed and lie in it


聽教聽話

/tʰɛːŋ⁵⁵ kaːu̯³³ tʰɛːŋ⁵⁵ waː²²/

/tʰɛːŋ⁵⁵ kaːu̯³³ tʰɛːŋ⁵⁵ waː²²/

(Cantonese, of children, pupils, etc.) to be obedient


早走早著

/t͡sou̯³⁵ t͡sɐu̯³⁵ t͡sou̯³⁵ t͡sœːk̚²/

/t͡sou̯³⁵ t͡sɐu̯³⁵ t͡sou̯³⁵ t͡sœːk̚²/

(Cantonese) when problem(s) are bound to occur, the earlier one leaves or escapes from the situation, the better it will be


好狗不擋路

ㄏㄠˇ ㄍㄡˇ ㄅㄨˋ ㄉㄤˇ ㄌㄨˋ

hǎo gǒu bù dǎnglù [Phonetic:háogǒubùdǎnglù]

хао гоу бу данлу

/xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ koʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu⁵¹ tɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ lu⁵¹/


斷紙餘墨

ㄉㄨㄢˋ ㄓˇ ㄩˊ ㄇㄛˋ

дуаньчжиюймо

/tu̯än⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ y³⁵ mu̯ɔ⁵¹/

/tu̯än⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ y³⁵ mu̯ɔ⁵¹/


尸居餘氣

/ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡ɕy⁵⁵ y³⁵ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹/

/ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡ɕy⁵⁵ y³⁵ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹/


睬你都有味

/t͡sʰɔːi̯³⁵ nei̯¹³ tou̯⁵⁵ jɐu̯¹³ mei̯²²/

睬你都傻 睬你都傻#Chinese


拚生盡死

ㄆㄢˋ ㄕㄥ ㄐㄧㄣˋ ㄙˇ

паньшэнцзиньсы

/pʰän⁵¹ ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ t͡ɕin⁵¹ sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/pʰän⁵¹ ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ t͡ɕin⁵¹ sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/


一夔已足

ㄧ ㄎㄨㄟˊ ㄧˇ ㄗㄨˊ

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ kʰu̯eɪ̯³⁵ i²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡su³⁵/

/jɐt̚⁵ kʷʰɐi̯²¹ jiː¹³ t͡sʊk̚⁵/

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ kʰu̯eɪ̯³⁵ i²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡su³⁵/

/jɐt̚⁵ kʷʰɐi̯²¹ jiː¹³ t͡sʊk̚⁵/

In Chinese mythology, Kui, who Emperor Shun appointed to be his Music Minister, invented classical Chinese music and dancing.


滿拚自盡

ㄇㄢˇ ㄆㄢˋ ㄗˋ ㄐㄧㄣˋ

маньпаньцзыцзинь

/män²¹⁴⁻²¹ pʰän⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕin⁵¹/

Tonight the Northern troops breached the north wall, and I determined to take my own life.

1699, Kong Shangren, The Peach Blossom Fan, scene 38, translated by Harold Acton

Běi bīng jīnyè gōngpò běichéng, ǎn yǐ mǎnpīnzìjìn.

北兵今夜攻破北城，俺已滿拚自盡。

北兵今夜攻破北城，俺已满拚自尽。

wholeheartedly determined to commit suicide


貪如饕餮

ㄊㄢ ㄖㄨˊ ㄊㄠ ㄊㄧㄝˋ

/tʰän⁵⁵ ʐu³⁵ tʰɑʊ̯⁵⁵ tʰi̯ɛ⁵¹/

/tʰän⁵⁵ ʐu³⁵ tʰɑʊ̯⁵⁵ tʰi̯ɛ⁵¹/


樂而不淫

ㄌㄜˋ ㄦˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄧㄣˊ

/lɤ⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ pu⁵¹ in³⁵/

/lɔːk̚² jiː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ jɐm²¹/

/lɤ⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ pu⁵¹ in³⁵/

/lɔːk̚² jiː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ jɐm²¹/

The Master said, "The Guan Ju (《關雎》) is expressive of enjoyment without being licentious, and of grief without being hurtfully excessive."

The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

Zǐyuē: ““Guān Jū”, lè ér bù yín, āi ér bù shāng.”

子曰：「《關雎》，樂而不淫，哀而不傷。」

子曰：「《关雎》，乐而不淫，哀而不伤。」


一以貫之

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ i²¹⁴⁻²¹ ku̯än⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/jɐt̚⁵ jiː¹³ kuːn³³ t͡siː⁵⁵/

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ i²¹⁴⁻²¹ ku̯än⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/jɐt̚⁵ jiː¹³ kuːn³³ t͡siː⁵⁵/

The Master said, "Shen, my doctrine is that of an all-pervading unity."

子曰：「參乎！吾道一以貫之。」

子曰：「参乎！吾道一以贯之。」

1900 July 24, 梁啟超 [Liang Qichao], chapter 16, in 和文漢讀法 [The Chinese Method of Reading Japanese], Tokyo: 秀英舍, page 10:

The method of their conjugation is to use kana in the same row. Having understood this rule, [you can conjugate all verbs] with the same principle with no obstructions whatsoever.

Qí biànhuà zhī fǎ, bì yǐ tóng yī xíng zhī zìmǔ. Jì tōng cǐ lì, yīyǐguànzhī, háowú zhì'ài yǐ.

其變化之法，必以同一行之字母。既通此例，一以貫之，毫無窒礙矣。

其变化之法，必以同一行之字母。既通此例，一以贯之，毫无窒碍矣。

to go through all things with the same principle


哀而不傷

/ˀaɪ̯⁵⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ pu⁵¹ ʂɑŋ⁵⁵/

/ɔːi̯⁵⁵ jiː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵/

/ˀaɪ̯⁵⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ pu⁵¹ ʂɑŋ⁵⁵/

/ɔːi̯⁵⁵ jiː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵/

子曰：「《關雎》，樂而不淫，哀而不傷。」

子曰：「《关雎》，乐而不淫，哀而不伤。」


登堂入室

ㄉㄥ ㄊㄤˊ ㄖㄨˋ ㄕˋ

/tɤŋ⁵⁵ tʰɑŋ³⁵ ʐu⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

/tɐŋ⁵⁵ tʰɔːŋ²¹ jɐp̚² sɐt̚⁵/

/tɤŋ⁵⁵ tʰɑŋ³⁵ ʐu⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹/

/tɐŋ⁵⁵ tʰɔːŋ²¹ jɐp̚² sɐt̚⁵/

The Master said, "What has the lute of You to do in my door?" The other disciples began not to respect Zilu. The Master said, "You has ascended to the hall, though he has not yet passed into the inner apartments."

Zǐyuē: “Yóu zhī sè, xī wèi yú Qiū zhī mén?” Ménrén bùjìng Zǐlù. Zǐyuē: “Yóu yě shēng táng yǐ, wèi rù yú shì yě.”

子曰：「由之瑟，奚為於丘之門？」門人不敬子路。子曰：「由也升堂矣，未入於室也。」

子曰：「由之瑟，奚为于丘之门？」门人不敬子路。子曰：「由也升堂矣，未入于室也。」

to ascend to the hall and enter the inner room

(figurative) to attain a high level in one's learning


待價而沽

ㄉㄞˋ ㄐㄧㄚˋ ㄦˊ ㄍㄨ

/taɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi̯ä⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ ku⁵⁵/

/tɔːi̯²² kaː³³ jiː²¹ kuː⁵⁵/

/taɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi̯ä⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ ku⁵⁵/

/tɔːi̯²² kaː³³ jiː²¹ kuː⁵⁵/

Zigong said, "There is a beautiful gem here. Should I lay it up in a case and keep it? or should I seek for a good price and sell it?" The Master said, "Sell it! Sell it! But I would wait for one to offer the price."

子貢曰：「有美玉於斯，韞匵而藏諸？求善賈而沽諸？」子曰：「沽之哉！沽之哉！我待賈

to wait for the highest bid before selling an item; to wait for the best job offer before providing one's service


friend過夾band

/fɛːn⁵⁵ kʷɔː³³ kaːp̚³ pɛːn⁵⁵/

/fɛːn⁵⁵ kʷɔː³³ kaːp̚³ pɛːn⁵⁵/

(Hong Kong Cantonese, simile) in a very close or friendly relationship


一雞兩味

/jɐt̚⁵ kɐi̯⁵⁵ lœːŋ¹³ mei̯²²⁻³⁵/

/jɐt̚⁵ kɐi̯⁵⁵ lœːŋ¹³ mei̯²²⁻³⁵/

kill two birds with one stone
kill two birds with one stone

(Cantonese) to kill two birds with one stone


北港香爐——人人插

the incense burner atChaotian Temple of Beigang - everyone puts (incenses) into it

ㄅㄟˇ ㄍㄤˇ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄌㄨˊ

Бэйган сянлу

/peɪ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ kɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ lu³⁵ ʐən³⁵ ʐən³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵/

(Taiwan, figurative, derogatory) a sexually promiscuous woman; a town bicycle


嘈到拆天

/t͡sʰou̯²¹ tou̯³³ t͡sʰaːk̚³ tʰiːn⁵⁵/

/t͡sʰou̯²¹ tou̯³³ t͡sʰaːk̚³ tʰiːn⁵⁵/


同人唔同命

same kind of person, different kinds of fates

/tʰʊŋ²¹ jɐn²¹ m̩²¹ tʰʊŋ²¹ mɛːŋ²²/

/tʰʊŋ²¹ jɐn²¹ m̩²¹ tʰʊŋ²¹ mɛːŋ²²/

(Cantonese) Everyone has different fates. (Used especially when someone sees other's success)


買棺材唔知埞

/maːi̯¹³ kuːn⁵⁵ t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹ m̩²¹ t͡siː⁵⁵ tɛːŋ²²/

(Cantonese) to be unaware of risks; to fail to recognize the seriousness of a situation


夜深人靜

ㄧㄝˋ ㄕㄣ ㄖㄣˊ ㄐㄧㄥˋ

ешэньжэньцзин

/jɛ⁵¹ ʂən⁵⁵ ʐən³⁵ t͡ɕiŋ⁵¹/

/jɛː²² sɐm⁵⁵ jɐn²¹ t͡sɪŋ²²/

/mẽ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ t͡sʰim³³⁻²³ naŋ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ t͡sẽ³⁵/

/jɛ⁵¹ ʂən⁵⁵ ʐən³⁵ t͡ɕiŋ⁵¹/

/jɛː²² sɐm⁵⁵ jɐn²¹ t͡sɪŋ²²/

/mẽ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ t͡sʰim³³⁻²³ naŋ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ t͡sẽ³⁵/


有圖有真相

ㄧㄡˇ ㄊㄨˊ ㄧㄡˇ ㄓㄣ ㄒㄧㄤˋ

ю ту ю чжэньсян

/joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ tʰu³⁵ joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂən⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵¹/

/jɐu̯¹³ tʰou̯²¹ jɐu̯¹³ t͡sɐn⁵⁵ sœːŋ³³/

/jɐu̯¹³ tʰou̯²¹ jɐu̯¹³ t͡sɐn⁵⁵ sœːŋ³³/

pics or it didn't happen
pics or it didn't happen

(Internet slang) pics or it didn't happen


舚脣咂嘴

ㄊㄧㄢˋ ㄔㄨㄣˊ ㄗㄚ ㄗㄨㄟˇ

тяньчуньцзацзуй

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən³⁵ t͡sä⁵⁵ t͡su̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/


肉隨砧板上

ㄖㄡˋ ㄙㄨㄟˊ ㄓㄣ ㄅㄢˇ ㄕㄤˋ

жоу суй чжэньбань шан

/ʐoʊ̯⁵¹ su̯eɪ̯³⁵ ʈ͡ʂən⁵⁵ pän²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂɑŋ⁵¹/

/jʊk̚² t͡sʰɵy̯²¹ t͡sɐm⁵⁵ paːn³⁵ sœːŋ²²/

/jʊk̚² t͡sʰɵy̯²¹ t͡sɐm⁵⁵ paːn³⁵ sœːŋ²²/

to have one's fate decided by some other person


夫目前犯

ㄈㄨ ㄇㄨˋ ㄑㄧㄢˊ ㄈㄢˋ

фумуцяньфань

/fu⁵⁵ mu⁵¹ t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn³⁵ fän⁵¹/

/fuː⁵⁵ mʊk̚² t͡sʰiːn²¹ faːn²²/

/fu⁵⁵ mu⁵¹ t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn³⁵ fän⁵¹/

/fuː⁵⁵ mʊk̚² t͡sʰiːn²¹ faːn²²/

From Japanese adult video series 夫の目の前で犯されて (“Raped in front of her husband”).

(neologism, of a wife) to have sex with a male, in the presence of the husband


從一而終

ㄘㄨㄥˊ ㄧ ㄦˊ ㄓㄨㄥ

/t͡sʰʊŋ³⁵ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵/

/t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ jɐt̚⁵ jiː²¹ t͡sʊŋ⁵⁵/

/t͡sʰoŋ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ t͡sek̚⁴⁻² d͡zɯ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ t͡soŋ³³/

/t͡sʰʊŋ³⁵ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵/

/t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ jɐt̚⁵ jiː²¹ t͡sʊŋ⁵⁵/

(of a woman) to be faithful to one's husband and not remarry

to be fully devoted to someone or something


朝行晚拆

to assemble in the morning and dismantle at night

/t͡siːu̯⁵⁵ hɔːŋ²¹ maːn¹³ t͡sʰaːk̚³/

/t͡siːu̯⁵⁵ hɔːŋ²¹ maːn¹³ t͡sʰaːk̚³/


倒屣相迎

ㄉㄠˋ ㄒㄧˇ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄧㄥˊ

/tɑʊ̯⁵¹ ɕi²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ iŋ³⁵/

/tou̯³³ saːi̯³⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵ jɪŋ²¹/

/tɑʊ̯⁵¹ ɕi²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ iŋ³⁵/

/tou̯³³ saːi̯³⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵ jɪŋ²¹/

When Emperor Xian moved the capital west to Chang'an, Wang Can followed the emperor and also moved there. When Cai Yong, the Left Commander of the Palace Guards met him, he was surprised at him. At that time, Cai was already known for his rich knowledge and was highly valued by the imperial court. The alleys near his house was often full of carriages and horses of his visitors, and his house was full of guests. One day, when he heard that Wang Can was in front of his house's door, he was too eager to welcome him that he put his shoes on the wrong feet.

Chen Shou, Records of the Three Kingdoms, circa 3ʳᵈ century CE

Xiàndì xī qiān, Càn xǐ Cháng'ān, zuǒ zhōnglángjiàng Cài Yōng jiàn ér qí zhī. Shí Yōng cáixué xiǎnzhù, guìzhòng cháotíng, cháng jūjì tián xiàng, bīnkè yíng zuò. Wén Càn zài mén, dào xǐ yíng zhī.

獻帝西遷，粲徙長安，左中郎將蔡邕見而奇之。時邕才學顯著，貴重朝廷，常車騎填巷，賓客盈坐。聞粲在門，倒屣迎之。

献帝西迁，粲徙长安，左中郎将蔡邕见而奇之。时邕才学显著，贵重朝廷，常车骑填巷，宾客盈坐。闻粲在门，倒屣迎之。


飛蛾撲火

ㄈㄟ ㄜˊ ㄆㄨ ㄏㄨㄛˇ

/feɪ̯⁵⁵ ˀɤ³⁵ pʰu⁵⁵ xu̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/fei̯⁵⁵ ŋɔː²¹ pʰɔːk̚³ fɔː³⁵/

/feɪ̯⁵⁵ ˀɤ³⁵ pʰu⁵⁵ xu̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/fei̯⁵⁵ ŋɔː²¹ pʰɔːk̚³ fɔː³⁵/

(figurative) to court self-destruction; to look for someone's own demise


搭通天地線

/taːp̚³ tʰʊŋ⁵⁵ tʰiːn⁵⁵ tei̯²² siːn³³/

/taːp̚³ tʰʊŋ⁵⁵ tʰiːn⁵⁵ tei̯²² siːn³³/

(Cantonese) to build up numerous connections and contacts


上面蒸鬆糕，下面賣涼粉

to steam sponge cakes above and sell grass jelly below

soeng⁶ min⁶ zing¹ sung¹ gou¹, haa⁶ min⁶ maai⁶ loeng⁴ fan²

seuhng mihn jīng sūng gōu, hah mihn maaih lèuhng fán

soeng⁶ min⁶ dzing¹ sung¹ gou¹, haa⁶ min⁶ maai⁶ loeng⁴ fan²

sêng⁶ min⁶ jing¹ sung¹ gou¹, ha⁶ min⁶ mai⁶ lêng⁴ fen²

/sœːŋ²² miːn²² t͡sɪŋ⁵⁵ sʊŋ⁵⁵ kou̯⁵⁵ haː²² miːn²² maːi̯²² lœːŋ²¹ fɐn³⁵/

(Cantonese, figurative) wearing much on top but little on the bottom


唔多唔少

/m̩²¹ tɔː⁵⁵ m̩²¹ siːu̯³⁵/

/m̩²¹ tɔː⁵⁵ m̩²¹ siːu̯³⁵/


火燒旗杆——長嘆

/fɔː³⁵ siːu̯⁵⁵ kʰei̯²¹ kɔːn⁵⁵ t͡sʰœːŋ²¹ tʰaːn³³/

A wooden flagpole after being burnt is a long piece of charcoal (長炭／长炭 (coeng⁴ taan³)), which is homophonic pun on 長嘆／长叹 (coeng⁴ taan³).
嘆／叹 (taan³) can mean "sigh" or "to enjoy" in Cantonese.

火燒旗桿——長嘆
火燒旗杆——長歎
火燒旗桿——長歎
火烧旗杆——长叹

when fire burns a flagpole - a long piece of charcoal

(Cantonese) to have a long sigh (because of helplessness, etc.)

(Cantonese) to enjoy life for a long time


難聽過粗口

more unpleasant to the ear than obscene language

/naːn²¹ tʰɛːŋ⁵⁵ kʷɔː³³ t͡sʰou̯⁵⁵ hɐu̯³⁵/


火燒棺材——大嘆

/fɔː³⁵ siːu̯⁵⁵ kuːn⁵⁵ t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹ taːi̯²² tʰaːn³³/

A coffin after being burnt is a big piece of charcoal (大炭 (daai⁶ taan³)), which is homophonic pun on 大嘆／大叹.

火燒棺材——大歎
火烧棺材——大叹

when fire burns a coffin - a big piece of charcoal (enjoy life greatly)


慳水慳力

/haːn⁵⁵ sɵy̯³⁵ haːn⁵⁵ lɪk̚²/

/haːn⁵⁵ sɵy̯³⁵ haːn⁵⁵ lɪk̚²/


梁新記牙刷——一毛不拔

/lœːŋ²¹ sɐn⁵⁵ kei̯³³ ŋaː²¹ t͡sʰaːt̚³⁻³⁵ jɐt̚⁵ mou̯²¹ pɐt̚⁵ pɐt̚²/

From the commercial of Leung Sun Kee Toothbrush Factory in Guangzhou in 1920-30s. The slogan 一毛不拔 (jat¹ mou⁴ bat¹ bat⁶) here meant "no single bristle will fall from the toothbrush" and was used to promote the quality of their products.

Leung Sun Kee's toothbrushes - no single bristle will fall / very stingy


無心插柳

ㄨˊ ㄒㄧㄣ ㄔㄚ ㄌㄧㄡˇ

/u³⁵ ɕin⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵ li̯oʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/mou̯²¹ sɐm⁵⁵ t͡sʰaːp̚³ lɐu̯¹³/

/u³⁵ ɕin⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵ li̯oʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/mou̯²¹ sɐm⁵⁵ t͡sʰaːp̚³ lɐu̯¹³/

無心插柳柳成蔭 無心插柳柳成蔭#Chinese

无心插柳柳成荫 无心插柳柳成荫#Chinese

Short for 無心插柳柳成蔭／无心插柳柳成荫 (wúxīn chā liǔ liǔ chéng yìn).


天妒英才

ㄊㄧㄢ ㄉㄨˋ ㄧㄥ ㄘㄞˊ

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ tu⁵¹ iŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰaɪ̯³⁵/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ tou̯²² jɪŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹/

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ tu⁵¹ iŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰaɪ̯³⁵/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ tou̯²² jɪŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹/

The Heaven is jealous of talents. (used to express regret to a talented person who died young)


有心栽花花不開，無心插柳柳成蔭

head

有心栽花花不開，無心插柳柳成蔭

有心栽花花不开，无心插柳柳成荫

Paid effort to plant flowers but the flowers don't bloom, no intention to plant a willow tree but it later grows into a shade

ㄧㄡˇ ㄒㄧㄣ ㄗㄞ ㄏㄨㄚ ㄏㄨㄚ ㄅㄨˋ ㄎㄞ

ㄨˊ ㄒㄧㄣ ㄔㄚ ㄌㄧㄡˇ ㄌㄧㄡˇ ㄔㄥˊ ㄧㄣˋ

jau⁵ sam¹ zoi¹ faa¹ faa¹ bat¹ hoi¹, mou⁴ sam¹ caap³ lau⁵ lau⁵ sing⁴ jam³

yǒuxīn zāi huā huā bù kāi, wúxīn chā liǔ liǔ chéng yìn [Phonetic:yǒuxīnzāihuāhuābùkāi,wúxīnchāliúliǔchéngyìn]

юсинь цзай хуа хуа бу кай

усинь ча лю лю чэн инь

/joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕin⁵⁵ t͡saɪ̯⁵⁵ xu̯ä⁵⁵ xu̯ä⁵⁵ pu⁵¹ kʰaɪ̯⁵⁵ u³⁵ ɕin⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵ li̯oʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ li̯oʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʰɤŋ³⁵ in⁵¹/

yáuh sām jōi fā fā bāt hōi, mòuh sām chaap láuh láuh sìhng yam

jau⁵ sam¹ dzoi¹ faa¹ faa¹ bat⁷ hoi¹, mou⁴ sam¹ tsaap⁸ lau⁵ lau⁵ sing⁴ jam³

yeo⁵ sem¹ zoi¹ fa¹ fa¹ bed¹ hoi¹, mou⁴ sem¹ cab³ leo⁵ leo⁵ xing⁴ yem³

/jɐu̯¹³ sɐm⁵⁵ t͡sɔːi̯⁵⁵ faː⁵⁵ faː⁵⁵ pɐt̚⁵ hɔːi̯⁵⁵ mou̯²¹ sɐm⁵⁵ t͡sʰaːp̚³ lɐu̯¹³ lɐu̯¹³ sɪŋ²¹ jɐm³³/

Sometimes when one tried to do things wholeheartedly, the results may not be good; but on the contrary, sometimes when one has no intention to do something, the results may be positive.


蒙主寵召

ㄇㄥˊ ㄓㄨˇ ㄔㄨㄥˇ ㄓㄠˋ

мэнчжучунчжао

/mɤŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂu²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰʊŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/mʊŋ²¹ t͡syː³⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ³⁵ t͡siːu̯²²/

/mʊŋ²¹ t͡syː³⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ³⁵ t͡siːu̯²²/

被難

to be killed in a disaster, political incident


當街當巷

/tɔːŋ⁵⁵ kaːi̯⁵⁵ tɔːŋ⁵⁵ hɔːŋ²²/

/tɔːŋ⁵⁵ kaːi̯⁵⁵ tɔːŋ⁵⁵ hɔːŋ²²/


此消彼長

ㄘˇ ㄒㄧㄠ ㄅㄧˇ ㄓㄤˇ

/t͡sʰz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵⁵ pi²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰiː³⁵ siːu̯⁵⁵ pei̯³⁵ t͡sœːŋ³⁵/

/t͡sʰiː³⁵ siːu̯⁵⁵ pei̯³⁵ t͡sœːŋ³⁵/

something declines while something else rises


指點迷津

ㄓˇ ㄉㄧㄢˇ ㄇㄧˊ ㄐㄧㄣ

чжидяньмицзинь

/ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ti̯ɛn²¹⁴⁻²¹ mi³⁵ t͡ɕin⁵⁵/

/t͡siː³⁵ tiːm³⁵ mɐi̯²¹ t͡sɵn⁵⁵/

/ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ti̯ɛn²¹⁴⁻²¹ mi³⁵ t͡ɕin⁵⁵/

/t͡siː³⁵ tiːm³⁵ mɐi̯²¹ t͡sɵn⁵⁵/

to provide the solution; to point out the right way


黑白天鵝——日哦夜哦

/hɐk̚⁵ paːk̚² tʰiːn⁵⁵ ŋɔː²¹ jɐt̚² ŋɔː²¹ jɛː²² ŋɔː²¹/

/haːk̚⁵ paːk̚² tʰiːn⁵⁵ ŋɔː²¹ jɐt̚² ŋɔː²¹ jɛː²² ŋɔː²¹/

A xiehouyu playing on the homophones 鵝／鹅 (ngo⁴, “goose”) and 哦 (ngo⁴, “to nag”), thus the first part being able to be interpreted as black and white sky-geese (swans) or as black (night) and white (day) sky nagging.

black and white swans — to nag day and night


車馬駢闐

ㄔㄜ ㄇㄚˇ ㄆㄧㄢˊ ㄊㄧㄢˊ

чэмапяньтянь

/ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ pʰi̯ɛn³⁵ tʰi̯ɛn³⁵/

/ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ pʰi̯ɛn³⁵ tʰi̯ɛn³⁵/

車馬駢溢 車馬駢溢#Chinese

车马骈溢 车马骈溢#Chinese


駢四儷六

ㄆㄧㄢˊ ㄙˋ ㄌㄧˋ ㄌㄧㄡˋ

/pʰi̯ɛn³⁵ sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ li⁵¹⁻⁵³ li̯oʊ̯⁵¹/

/pʰi̯ɛn³⁵ sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ li⁵¹⁻⁵³ li̯oʊ̯⁵¹/


佗手褦腳

佗手褦脚
佗手掕腳
陀手褦腳
陀手掕腳

/tʰɔː²¹ sɐu̯³⁵ lɐŋ³³ kœːk̚³/

/tʰɔː²¹ sɐu̯³⁵ lɐŋ³³ kœːk̚³/

(Cantonese) to cause hindrance or burden


車馬駢溢

ㄔㄜ ㄇㄚˇ ㄆㄧㄢˊ ㄧˋ

/ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ pʰi̯ɛn³⁵ i⁵¹/

/ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ pʰi̯ɛn³⁵ i⁵¹/


內外交困

ㄋㄟˋ ㄨㄞˋ ㄐㄧㄠ ㄎㄨㄣˋ

нэйвайцзяокунь

/neɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ waɪ̯⁵¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵⁵ kʰu̯ən⁵¹/

/nɔːi̯²² ŋɔːi̯²² kaːu̯⁵⁵ kʷʰɐn³³/

/neɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ waɪ̯⁵¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵⁵ kʰu̯ən⁵¹/

/nɔːi̯²² ŋɔːi̯²² kaːu̯⁵⁵ kʷʰɐn³³/

diplomatic relations
diplomatic relations

when a country's (internal) economy and (external) diplomatic relations are in dire straits


內外姻黨

ㄋㄟˋ ㄨㄞˋ ㄧㄣ ㄉㄤˇ

нэйвайиньдан

/neɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ waɪ̯⁵¹ in⁵⁵ tɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/neɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ waɪ̯⁵¹ in⁵⁵ tɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

relatives who have a blood relationship with or through their parents


人不犯我，我不犯人

人若犯我，我必犯人

ㄖㄣˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄈㄢˋ ㄨㄛˇ

ㄨㄛˇ ㄅㄨˋ ㄈㄢˋ ㄖㄣˊ

jan⁴ bat¹ faan⁶ ngo⁵, ngo⁵ bat¹ faan⁶ jan⁴

жэнь бу фань во

во бу фань жэнь

/ʐən³⁵ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ fän⁵¹ wɔ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ wɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ fän⁵¹ ʐən³⁵/

yàhn bāt faahn ngóh, ngóh bāt faahn yàhn

jan⁴ bat⁷ faan⁶ ngo⁵, ngo⁵ bat⁷ faan⁶ jan⁴

yen⁴ bed¹ fan⁶ ngo⁵, ngo⁵ bed¹ fan⁶ yen⁴

/jɐn²¹ pɐt̚⁵ faːn²² ŋɔː¹³ ŋɔː¹³ pɐt̚⁵ faːn²² jɐn²¹/

When I was a boy, and when I was in middle school, I used to get all steamed up whenever I heard unpleasant things [about myself]. If people don’t attack me, I won’t attack them. If people attack me, I will certainly attack them. They attack me first, I attack them later. This principle I have never abandoned down to the present time. Now I have learnt to listen, to toughen my scalp and listen for one or two weeks and then counter-attack.

這也難，我少年、中學時代，也是一聽到壞話就一肚子氣，人不犯我，我不犯人[[#Chinese|]]


又呢又嚕

又呢又噜
又呢又路
又哩又路

/jɐu̯²² niː⁵⁵ jɐu̯²² lou̯³³/

/jɐu̯²² nei̯⁵⁵ jɐu̯²² lou̯³³/

/jɐu̯²² niː⁵⁵ jɐu̯²² lou̯³³/

/jɐu̯²² nei̯⁵⁵ jɐu̯²² lou̯³³/

(Cantonese) (to say) this and that; to go on (annoyingly) talking about various things


盲人騎瞎馬

ㄇㄤˊ ㄖㄣˊ ㄑㄧˊ ㄒㄧㄚ ㄇㄚˇ

манжэнь ци ся ма

/mɑŋ³⁵ ʐən³⁵ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ ɕi̯ä⁵⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/


索利那新

ㄙㄨㄛˇ ㄌㄧˋ ㄋㄚˋ ㄒㄧㄣ

/su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ li⁵¹⁻⁵³ nä⁵¹ ɕin⁵⁵/

/su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ li⁵¹⁻⁵³ nä⁵¹ ɕin⁵⁵/


言行舉止

ㄧㄢˊ ㄒㄧㄥˊ ㄐㄩˇ ㄓˇ

ㄧㄢˊ ㄒㄧㄥˋ ㄐㄩˇ ㄓˇ

яньсинцзюйчжи

/jɛn³⁵ ɕiŋ³⁵ t͡ɕy²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jɛn³⁵ ɕiŋ⁵¹ t͡ɕy²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jiːn²¹ hɐŋ²² kɵy̯³⁵ t͡siː³⁵/

/jiːn²¹ hɐŋ²¹ kɵy̯³⁵ t͡siː³⁵/

/jɛn³⁵ ɕiŋ³⁵ t͡ɕy²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jɛn³⁵ ɕiŋ⁵¹ t͡ɕy²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jiːn²¹ hɐŋ²² kɵy̯³⁵ t͡siː³⁵/

/jiːn²¹ hɐŋ²¹ kɵy̯³⁵ t͡siː³⁵/

speech and behaviour; words, actions and manners


人強馬壯

ㄖㄣˊ ㄑㄧㄤˊ ㄇㄚˇ ㄓㄨㄤˋ

жэньцянмачжуан

/ʐən³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑŋ³⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂu̯ɑŋ⁵¹/

/jɐn²¹ kʰœːŋ²¹ maː¹³ t͡sɔːŋ³³/

/ʐən³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑŋ³⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂu̯ɑŋ⁵¹/

/jɐn²¹ kʰœːŋ²¹ maː¹³ t͡sɔːŋ³³/

(of an army) high in combat effectiveness


老舉埋年——算鳩數

a prostitute near the end of a year―keeping penis accounts

/lou̯¹³ kɵy̯³⁵ maːi̯²¹ niːn²¹ syːn³³ kɐu̯⁵⁵ sou̯³³/


冇挐冇褦

冇𠸎冇㨢
冇嗱冇能
冇挐冇掕
冇啦冇㨢
冇啦冇掕
無挐無褦
無挐無掕

/mou̯¹³ naː⁵⁵ mou̯¹³ nɐŋ³³/

/mou̯¹³ naː⁵⁵ mou̯¹³ nɐŋ³³/

(Cantonese) to be irrelevant, to have no relationship with


串過碼頭咕喱

串过码头咕喱
串過碼頭咕哩
寸過碼頭咕喱
寸過碼頭咕哩

/t͡sʰyːn³³ kʷɔː³³ maː¹³ tʰɐu̯²¹ kuː⁵⁵ lei̯⁵⁵/

(Cantonese, simile) to be very arrogant or condescending


十個煲兩個蓋

/sɐp̚² kɔː³³ pou̯⁵⁵ lœːŋ¹³ kɔː³³ kɔːi̯³³/

最矛盾弔詭的就在這裏：我在羨慕成功創業的朋友當下豐足的生活時，卻忘記了別人當年開業時，十個煲兩個蓋的艱難時候。

2011 November 14, 葉宇堃, “矽谷創業天堂 但你願冒險嗎”, in 香港經濟日報:

十個煲九個蓋 十個煲九個蓋#Chinese

十个煲九个盖 十个煲九个盖#Chinese

Synonym of 十個煲九個蓋／十个煲九个盖


十個煲三個蓋

/sɐp̚² kɔː³³ pou̯⁵⁵ saːm⁵⁵ kɔː³³ kɔːi̯³³/

他指會計界聘請人才非常困難，慨歎會計界「有呼吸都要請」，現時會計界別是「十個煲三個蓋」。

2023 April 21, “大灣區外勞即日往返議案獲通過”, in 星島日報:

十個煲九個蓋 十個煲九個蓋#Chinese

十个煲九个盖 十个煲九个盖#Chinese

Synonym of 十個煲九個蓋／十个煲九个盖


十個煲一個蓋

/sɐp̚² kɔː³³ pou̯⁵⁵ jɐt̚⁵ kɔː³³ kɔːi̯³³/

消防處昨日被申訴專員公署猛烈炮轟巡查工作緩慢，有資深消防人員指，負責審批牌照的部門人手「十個煲、一個蓋」，根本無法應付龐大的巡查工作，更荒謬的是，當消防處向持牌人發出要求改善通知書，持牌人若不理會，消防處便不了了之。

2010 May 14, “牌照組欠人手「十煲一蓋」”, in 太陽報:

十個煲九個蓋 十個煲九個蓋#Chinese

十个煲九个盖 十个煲九个盖#Chinese

Synonym of 十個煲九個蓋／十个煲九个盖


十個煲五個蓋

/sɐp̚² kɔː³³ pou̯⁵⁵ ŋ̍¹³ kɔː³³ kɔːi̯³³/

/sɐp̚² kɔː³³ pou̯⁵⁵ ŋ̍¹³ kɔː³³ kɔːi̯³³/

公立醫院十個煲五個蓋，醫護人員不足嗌晒救命，而食物及衞生局局長陳肇始尋日就喺網誌重提施政報告落實增加醫護人手的措施，強調「未雨綢繆總勝過臨渴掘井」。

2018 November 26, “政情：公民講場：增醫護學額難止渴 陳肇始自吹自擂”, in 東方日報 [Oriental Daily]:

十個煲九個蓋 十個煲九個蓋#Chinese

十个煲九个盖 十个煲九个盖#Chinese

Synonym of 十個煲九個蓋／十个煲九个盖


十個煲九個蓋

/sɐp̚² kɔː³³ pou̯⁵⁵ kɐu̯³⁵ kɔː³³ kɔːi̯³³/

(Cantonese) to have not enough resources to deal with the problems


十個煲七個蓋

/sɐp̚² kɔː³³ pou̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰɐt̚⁵ kɔː³³ kɔːi̯³³/

係人都知，公立醫院前線人手長期不足，十個煲七個蓋，本來已經捉襟見肘，加上近期私營醫院不斷以高薪挖角，吸引唔少人跳槽，更係雪上加霜。

2016 February 28, “十個煲僅七個蓋 私院挖角雪上霜”, in 東方日報 [Oriental Daily]:

十個煲九個蓋 十個煲九個蓋#Chinese

十个煲九个盖 十个煲九个盖#Chinese

Synonym of 十個煲九個蓋／十个煲九个盖


十個煲六個蓋

/sɐp̚² kɔː³³ pou̯⁵⁵ lʊk̚² kɔː³³ kɔːi̯³³/

係人都知，由於醫管局管理無方，醫療資源嚴重錯配，公立醫院「十個煲六個蓋」嘅情況相當普遍，搞到前線人員壓力爆煲，得閒死唔得閒病，醫生護士逃亡潮一浪接一浪，瑪麗醫院就曾經有外科護士集體請病假以示抗議。

2011 July 17, “護士買少見少 救命恐變催命”, in 東方日報 [Oriental Daily]:

十個煲九個蓋 十個煲九個蓋#Chinese

十个煲九个盖 十个煲九个盖#Chinese

Synonym of 十個煲九個蓋／十个煲九个盖


十個煲八個蓋

/sɐp̚² kɔː³³ pou̯⁵⁵ paːt̚³ kɔː³³ kɔːi̯³³/

她又提到，工程師的收入待遇較其他工程專業低，多年來未見改善，而年輕人越來越重視生活與工作平衡，但目前行內不少人工時超長，特別是私人顧問工程公司，經常是「十個煲八個蓋」，人手不足，希望日後能得到改善。

2021 September 15, “落區聽取意見 選委：我們面向市民”, in 大公報, page A8:

十個煲九個蓋 十個煲九個蓋#Chinese

十个煲九个盖 十个煲九个盖#Chinese

Synonym of 十個煲九個蓋／十个煲九个盖


賣魚佬沖涼——冇嗮聲氣

/maːi̯²² jyː²¹ lou̯³⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ lœːŋ²¹ mou̯¹³ saːi̯³³ sɛːŋ⁵⁵ hei̯³³/

腥氣／腥气 (seng¹ hei³, “fishy smell”) is a homophonic pun of 聲氣／声气 (seng¹ hei³, “news”).

A fishmonger takes a shower/bath — no fishy smell (news)

(Cantonese) no further news; no later development


頭大冇腦，腦大生草

with a big head but without a brain, with a big brain but only grass grows inside

tau⁴ daai⁶ mou⁵ nou⁵, nou⁵ daai⁶ saang¹ cou²

tàuh daaih móuh nóuh, nóuh daaih sāang chóu

tau⁴ daai⁶ mou⁵ nou⁵, nou⁵ daai⁶ saang¹ tsou²

teo⁴ dai⁶ mou⁵ nou⁵, nou⁵ dai⁶ sang¹ cou²

/tʰɐu̯²¹ taːi̯²² mou̯¹³ nou̯¹³ nou̯¹³ taːi̯²² saːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰou̯³⁵/

(Cantonese, derogatory) brainless; stupid