無晏十晏

/u¹³ ŋan⁴⁵ ʂʐ̩²⁴ ŋan⁴⁵/

/u¹³ ŋan⁴⁵ sz̩²⁴ ŋan⁴⁵/

/u¹³ ŋan⁴⁵ ʂʐ̩²⁴ ŋan⁴⁵/

/u¹³ ŋan⁴⁵ sz̩²⁴ ŋan⁴⁵/


無情冇事

/u¹³ t͡sin³ mɒu̯²¹⁻¹¹ sz̩²¹⁻¹¹/

/u¹³ t͡ɕin³ mɒu̯²¹⁻¹¹ sz̩²¹⁻¹¹/

/u¹³ t͡sin³ mɒu̯²¹⁻¹¹ sz̩²¹⁻¹¹/

/u¹³ t͡ɕin³ mɒu̯²¹⁻¹¹ sz̩²¹⁻¹¹/

(Xiang) without cause or reason; for no reason at all


四六兒不懂

ㄙˋ ㄌㄧㄡˋㄦ ㄅㄨˋ ㄉㄨㄥˇ

/sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ li̯ɤʊ̯ɻʷ⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ tʊŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

(Northeastern Mandarin) to be completely ignorant (of rules, customs, etc.)


全國各地

ㄑㄩㄢˊ ㄍㄨㄛˊ ㄍㄜˋ ㄉㄧˋ

/t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn³⁵ ku̯ɔ³⁵ kɤ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ti⁵¹/

/t͡sʰyːn²¹ kʷɔːk̚³ kɔːk̚³ tei̯²²/

/t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn³⁵ ku̯ɔ³⁵ kɤ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ti⁵¹/

/t͡sʰyːn²¹ kʷɔːk̚³ kɔːk̚³ tei̯²²/


烏黢麻黑

/u³³ t͡sʰi³³ ma̠³³ xɤ̞²⁴/

/u³³ t͡ɕʰi³³ ma̠³³ xɤ̞²⁴/

/u³³ t͡sʰi³³ ma̠³³ xɤ̞²⁴/

/u³³ t͡ɕʰi³³ ma̠³³ xɤ̞²⁴/


烏同黑暗

/u³³ tʊŋ¹³ xɤ̞²⁴ ŋan⁴⁵/

/u³³ tən¹³ xɤ̞²⁴ ŋan⁴⁵/

/u³³ tʊŋ¹³ xɤ̞²⁴ ŋan⁴⁵/

/u³³ tən¹³ xɤ̞²⁴ ŋan⁴⁵/


烏風黑暗

/u³³ xʊŋ³³ xɤ̞²⁴ ŋan⁴⁵/

/u³³ xən³³ xɤ̞²⁴ ŋan⁴⁵/

/u³³ xʊŋ³³ xɤ̞²⁴ ŋan⁴⁵/

/u³³ xən³³ xɤ̞²⁴ ŋan⁴⁵/


一坦平洋

/i²⁴ tʰan⁴¹ pin¹³ i̯æn¹³/

/i²⁴ tʰan⁴¹ pin¹³ i̯æn¹³/

(Xiang) wide expanse of flat land; wide stretch of flat country


貫徹始終

ㄍㄨㄢˋ ㄔㄜˋ ㄕˇ ㄓㄨㄥ

гуаньчэшичжун

/ku̯än⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵¹ ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵/

/kuːn³³ t͡sʰiːt̚³ t͡sʰiː³⁵ t͡sʊŋ⁵⁵/

/kon⁵⁵ t͡sʰat̚⁵ sɨ³¹ t͡suŋ²⁴/

/kuan²¹⁻⁵³ tʰiɛt̚³²⁻⁴ si⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɔŋ⁴⁴/

/kuan⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ tʰiɛt̚⁵⁻²⁴ si⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ t͡siɔŋ³³/

/kuan²¹⁻⁵³ tʰiɛt̚³²⁻⁵ si⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɔŋ⁴⁴/

/kuan¹¹⁻⁵³ tʰiɛt̚³²⁻⁴ si⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɔŋ⁴⁴/

/kuan²¹⁻⁴¹ tʰiɛt̚³²⁻⁴ si⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɔŋ⁴⁴/

/ku̯än⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵¹ ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵/

/kuːn³³ t͡sʰiːt̚³ t͡sʰiː³⁵ t͡sʊŋ⁵⁵/

/kon⁵⁵ t͡sʰat̚⁵ sɨ³¹ t͡suŋ²⁴/

/kuan²¹⁻⁵³ tʰiɛt̚³²⁻⁴ si⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɔŋ⁴⁴/

/kuan²¹⁻⁵³ tʰiɛt̚³²⁻⁵ si⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɔŋ⁴⁴/

/kuan¹¹⁻⁵³ tʰiɛt̚³²⁻⁴ si⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɔŋ⁴⁴/

/kuan²¹⁻⁴¹ tʰiɛt̚³²⁻⁴ si⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɔŋ⁴⁴/

to follow through; to carry through to the end


自作孽，不可活

ㄗˋ ㄗㄨㄛˋ ㄋㄧㄝˋ

ㄅㄨˋ ㄎㄜˇ ㄏㄨㄛˊ

/t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ni̯ɛ⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ kʰɤ²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu̯ɔ³⁵/

/t͡siː²² t͡sɔːk̚³ jiːp̚² pɐt̚⁵ hɔː³⁵ wuːt̚²/

/t͡siː²² t͡sɔːk̚³ jiːt̚² pɐt̚⁵ hɔː³⁵ wuːt̚²/

From Mencius (《孟子·公孫丑上》), citing the Book of Documents:
:
The text in the Forged Old Text of the Book of Documents is slightly different (《尚書·太甲》)

By the passage of the Tai Jia, "When Heaven sends down calamities, it is still possible to escape from them; when we occasion the calamities ourselves, it is not possible any longer to live."

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

“Tàijiǎ” yuē: ‘Tiān zuòniè, yóu kě wéi; zì zuòniè, bùkě huó.’

《太甲》曰：『天作孽，猶可違；自作孽，不可活。』

《太甲》曰：『天作孽，犹可违；自作孽，不可活。』

By my desires I was setting at nought all rules of conduct, and violating by my self-indulgence all rules of propriety, and the result must have been speedy ruin to my person. Calamities sent by Heaven may be avoided, but from calamities brought on by one's self there is no escape.

欲敗度，縱敗禮，以速戾于厥躬。天作孽，猶可違；自作孽，不可逭

to bear the disastrous consequences of one's own misdeeds


痴心妄想

ㄔ ㄒㄧㄣ ㄨㄤˋ ㄒㄧㄤˇ

чисиньвансян

/ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩⁵⁵ ɕin⁵⁵ wɑŋ⁵¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰiː⁵⁵ sɐm⁵⁵ mɔːŋ¹³ sœːŋ³⁵/

/ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩⁵⁵ ɕin⁵⁵ wɑŋ⁵¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰiː⁵⁵ sɐm⁵⁵ mɔːŋ¹³ sœːŋ³⁵/

to obsessively fantasize about something that cannot come true


裨補闕漏

ㄅㄧˋ ㄅㄨˇ ㄑㄩㄝ ㄌㄡˋ

/pi⁵¹ pu²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕʰy̯ɛ⁵⁵ loʊ̯⁵¹/

/pei̯⁵⁵ pou̯³⁵ kʰyːt̚³ lɐu̯²²/

/pi⁵¹ pu²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕʰy̯ɛ⁵⁵ loʊ̯⁵¹/

/pei̯⁵⁵ pou̯³⁵ kʰyːt̚³ lɐu̯²²/


折衝樽俎

ㄓㄜˊ ㄔㄨㄥ ㄗㄨㄣ ㄗㄨˇ

чжэчунцзуньцзу

/ʈ͡ʂɤ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡su̯ən⁵⁵ t͡su²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡siːt̚³ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡sɵn⁵⁵ t͡sɔː³⁵/

/t͡siːt̚³ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡sɵn⁵⁵ t͡sɔː³⁵/

(literally) to stop the enemy at the banquet table

(figurative) to get the better of an enemy during diplomatic functions


宋襄之仁

ㄙㄨㄥˋ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄓ ㄖㄣˊ

сунсянчжижэнь

/sʊŋ⁵¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/sʊŋ³³ sœːŋ⁵⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ jɐn²¹/

/sʊŋ⁵¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/sʊŋ³³ sœːŋ⁵⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ jɐn²¹/

From the story of the Battle of Hongshui between the state of Song and Chu in 638 BCE, in which Duke Xiang of Song, in order to display his benevolence, waited for the Chu army to fully cross the river and rearrange itself into a battle formation before attacking it, leading to the thorough defeat of the Song army.

the ridiculous act of showing benevolence towards one's enemy

Chu (state)
Duke Xiang of Song
Song (state)


尸祿素餐

ㄕ ㄌㄨˋ ㄙㄨˋ ㄘㄢ

/ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ lu⁵¹⁻⁵³ su⁵¹ t͡sʰän⁵⁵/

/siː⁵⁵ lʊk̚² sou̯³³ t͡sʰaːn⁵⁵/

/ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ lu⁵¹⁻⁵³ su⁵¹ t͡sʰän⁵⁵/

/siː⁵⁵ lʊk̚² sou̯³³ t͡sʰaːn⁵⁵/

尸位素餐 尸位素餐#Chinese

(derogatory or humble) Synonym of 尸位素餐 (shīwèisùcān)


凜遵

/lin²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡su̯ən⁵⁵/

/lɐm¹³ t͡sɵn⁵⁵/

/lin²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡su̯ən⁵⁵/

/lɐm¹³ t͡sɵn⁵⁵/

勿謂言之不預也，其凜遵毋忽

1792, Qianlong Emperor, Letter to George III, translated in E. Backhouse and J. O. P. Bland, Annals and Memoirs of the Court of Peking (1914), page 331

Do not say that you were not warned in due time! Tremblingly obey and show no negligence!

Wù wèi yán zhī bù yù yě, qí lǐn zūn wú hū

tremble and obey
tremble and obey#English

(Classical) tremble and obey (phrase used in decrees of the imperial era)


尸利素餐

ㄕ ㄌㄧˋ ㄙㄨˋ ㄘㄢ

/ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ li⁵¹⁻⁵³ su⁵¹ t͡sʰän⁵⁵/

/siː⁵⁵ lei̯²² sou̯³³ t͡sʰaːn⁵⁵/

/ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ li⁵¹⁻⁵³ su⁵¹ t͡sʰän⁵⁵/

/siː⁵⁵ lei̯²² sou̯³³ t͡sʰaːn⁵⁵/

尸位素餐 尸位素餐#Chinese


肉眉悻眼

/ʐəu⁴⁵ mi¹¹ ɕĩŋ⁴⁵ nie⁵³/

/ʐəu⁴⁵ mi¹¹ ɕĩŋ⁴⁵ nie⁵³/

(Jin) having a large head, plump face, and being clumsy


肉頭悻腦

/ʐəu⁴⁵ tʰəu¹¹ ɕĩŋ⁴⁵ nau⁵³/

/ʐəu⁴⁵ tʰəu¹¹ ɕĩŋ⁴⁵ nau⁵³/


挨生挨死

/ŋaːi̯²¹ saːŋ⁵⁵ ŋaːi̯²¹ sei̯³⁵/

/ai̯²⁴⁻¹¹ saŋ²⁴⁻¹¹ ai̯²⁴ si³¹/

/ŋaːi̯²¹ saːŋ⁵⁵ ŋaːi̯²¹ sei̯³⁵/

/ai̯²⁴⁻¹¹ saŋ²⁴⁻¹¹ ai̯²⁴ si³¹/

(Cantonese, Hakka) to drag out an ignoble existence; to endure hardships; to live a hard life and work very hard


悻悻而去

ㄒㄧㄥˋ ㄒㄧㄥˋ ㄦˇ ㄑㄩˋ

синсинъэрцюй

/ɕiŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ɕiŋ⁵¹ ˀɤɻ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕʰy⁵¹/

/hɐŋ²² hɐŋ²² jiː²¹ hɵy̯³³/

/ɕiŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ɕiŋ⁵¹ ˀɤɻ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕʰy⁵¹/

/hɐŋ²² hɐŋ²² jiː²¹ hɵy̯³³/


天昏地暗

ㄊㄧㄢ ㄏㄨㄣ ㄉㄧˋ ㄢˋ

тяньхуньдиань

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ xu̯ən⁵⁵ ti⁵¹⁻⁵³ ˀän⁵¹/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ fɐn⁵⁵ tei̯²² ɐm³³/

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ xu̯ən⁵⁵ ti⁵¹⁻⁵³ ˀän⁵¹/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ fɐn⁵⁵ tei̯²² ɐm³³/


圪晾半死

/kəʔ⁵⁴⁻² liɒ̃⁴⁵ pæ̃⁴⁵ sz̩⁵³/

/kəʔ⁵⁴⁻² liɒ̃⁴⁵ pæ̃⁴⁵ sz̩⁵³/


返魂乏術

ㄈㄢˇ ㄏㄨㄣˊ ㄈㄚˊ ㄕㄨˋ

фаньхуньфашу

/fän²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu̯ən³⁵ fä³⁵ ʂu⁵¹/

/faːn³⁵ wɐn²¹ fɐt̚² sɵt̚²/

/fän²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu̯ən³⁵ fä³⁵ ʂu⁵¹/

/faːn³⁵ wɐn²¹ fɐt̚² sɵt̚²/


故態復萌

ㄍㄨˋ ㄊㄞˋ ㄈㄨˋ ㄇㄥˊ

/ku⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰaɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ fu⁵¹ mɤŋ³⁵/

/kuː³³ tʰaːi̯³³ fʊk̚² mɐŋ²¹/

/ku⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰaɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ fu⁵¹ mɤŋ³⁵/

/kuː³³ tʰaːi̯³³ fʊk̚² mɐŋ²¹/

to return to one's old bad habits; to relapse into a former undesirable state


絕子絕孫

ㄐㄩㄝˊ ㄗˇ ㄐㄩㄝˊ ㄙㄨㄣ

цзюэцзыцзюэсунь

/t͡ɕy̯ɛ³⁵ t͡sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕy̯ɛ³⁵ su̯ən⁵⁵/

/t͡ɕy̯ɛ³⁵ t͡sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕy̯ɛ³⁵ su̯ən⁵⁵/

Nǐ gùyì yānsǐ le liǎng qiān èr bǎi ge xiǎogōng, měi yīge xiǎogōng de xìngmìng nǐ kòu sān bǎi kuài qián! Xìng Zhōu de, nǐ fā de shì juézǐjuésūn de mèixīncái! Nǐ xiànzài hái —

你故意淹死了兩千二百個小工，每一個小工的性命你扣三百塊錢！姓周的，你發的是絕子絕孫的昧心財！你現在還——

你故意淹死了两千二百个小工，每一个小工的性命你扣三百块钱！姓周的，你发的是绝子绝孙的昧心财！你现在还——

(often as a curse) to have no descendants


負負得正

ㄈㄨˋ ㄈㄨˋ ㄉㄜˊ ㄓㄥˋ

/fu⁵¹⁻⁵³ fu⁵¹ tɤ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/fuː²² fuː²² tɐk̚⁵ t͡sɪŋ³³/

/fu⁵¹⁻⁵³ fu⁵¹ tɤ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/fuː²² fuː²² tɐk̚⁵ t͡sɪŋ³³/

(mathematics, mnemonic) two negatives make a positive; the product of two negative numbers is a positive number


紅杏出牆

ㄏㄨㄥˊ ㄒㄧㄥˋ ㄔㄨ ㄑㄧㄤˊ

/xʊŋ³⁵ ɕiŋ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑŋ³⁵/

/hʊŋ²¹ hɐŋ²² t͡sʰɵt̚⁵ t͡sʰœːŋ²¹/

/xʊŋ³⁵ ɕiŋ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑŋ³⁵/

/hʊŋ²¹ hɐŋ²² t͡sʰɵt̚⁵ t͡sʰœːŋ²¹/

(of a wife) to have an affair; to cheat on her husband


爐火純青

ㄌㄨˊ ㄏㄨㄛˇ ㄔㄨㄣˊ ㄑㄧㄥ

/lu³⁵ xu̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən³⁵ t͡ɕʰiŋ⁵⁵/

/lou̯²¹ fɔː³⁵ sɵn²¹ t͡sʰɪŋ⁵⁵/

/lu³⁵ xu̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən³⁵ t͡ɕʰiŋ⁵⁵/

/lou̯²¹ fɔː³⁵ sɵn²¹ t͡sʰɪŋ⁵⁵/

to have reached high perfection or complete mastery


拋妻棄子

ㄆㄠ ㄑㄧ ㄑㄧˋ ㄗˇ

/pʰɑʊ̯⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹ t͡sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/pʰaːu̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰɐi̯⁵⁵ hei̯³³ t͡siː³⁵/

/pʰaːu̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰɐi̯⁵⁵ hei̯³³ t͡siː³⁵/


重整旗鼓

ㄔㄨㄥˊ ㄓㄥˇ ㄑㄧˊ ㄍㄨˇ

чунчжэн цигу

/ʈ͡ʂʰʊŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ ku²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ t͡sɪŋ³⁵ kʰei̯²¹ kuː³⁵/

/teŋ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ t͡sĩã⁵²⁻³⁵ ki⁵⁵⁻¹¹ kou⁵²/

/t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ t͡sɪŋ³⁵ kʰei̯²¹ kuː³⁵/

/teŋ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ t͡sĩã⁵²⁻³⁵ ki⁵⁵⁻¹¹ kou⁵²/

to rally one's forces (after a defeat); to begin all over again


鬧太套

/nɑʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰaɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰɑʊ̯⁵¹/

ㄋㄠˋ ㄊㄞˋ ㄊㄠˋㄦ

/nɑʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰaɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰaʊ̯ɻʷ⁵¹/

/nɑʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰaɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/nɑʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰaɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ tʰaʊ̯ɻʷ⁵¹/

黃曉明 w:zh:黃曉明

(slang) not at all (generally a stab at Huang Xiaoming (黃曉明) for his bad English)


無變

→ English: bo bian

/bo²⁴⁻²¹ piɛn²¹/

/bo²³⁻²¹ piɛn²¹/

/bo⁵⁵⁻¹¹ piaŋ²¹³/

/bo⁵⁵⁻¹¹ pieŋ²¹³/

/bo²⁴⁻²¹ piɛn²¹/

/bo²³⁻²¹ piɛn²¹/

/bo⁵⁵⁻¹¹ piaŋ²¹³/

/bo⁵⁵⁻¹¹ pieŋ²¹³/

(Hakka, Hokkien, Teochew) there is nothing to be done; one can't do anything about it


無辦法

/mo¹¹ pʰan⁵³⁻⁵⁵ fap̚¹/

/bo²⁴⁻²² pan²²⁻²¹ huat̚³²/

/bo²⁴⁻²¹ pan²²⁻²¹ huat̚³²/

/bo⁵⁵⁻¹¹ põĩ¹¹ huak̚²/

/mo¹¹ pʰan⁵³⁻⁵⁵ fap̚¹/

/bo²⁴⁻²² pan²²⁻²¹ huat̚³²/

/bo²⁴⁻²¹ pan²²⁻²¹ huat̚³²/

/bo⁵⁵⁻¹¹ põĩ¹¹ huak̚²/

(Hakka, Southern Min) it can't be helped; there is no choice


冇辦法

(Cantonese) there is nothing to be done; one can't do anything about it


懲一儆百

ㄔㄥˊ ㄧ ㄐㄧㄥˇ ㄅㄞˇ

чэнъи цзинбай

/ʈ͡ʂʰɤŋ³⁵ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ t͡ɕiŋ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ paɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰɪŋ²¹ jɐt̚⁵ kɪŋ³⁵ paːk̚³/

/tʰeŋ⁵²⁻³⁵ t͡sek̚⁴⁻² keŋ³⁵⁻¹¹ peʔ²/

/t͡sʰɪŋ²¹ jɐt̚⁵ kɪŋ³⁵ paːk̚³/

/tʰeŋ⁵²⁻³⁵ t͡sek̚⁴⁻² keŋ³⁵⁻¹¹ peʔ²/


半夜五更

/pæ̃⁴⁵ ie⁴⁵ vu⁵³ t͡ɕĩŋ¹¹/

/pæ̃⁴⁵ ie⁴⁵ vu⁵³ t͡ɕĩŋ¹¹/

(Jin) in the middle of the night; late at night


白明黑夜

/pai¹¹ mĩŋ¹¹ xəʔ² ie⁴⁵/

/pai¹¹ mĩŋ¹¹ xəʔ² ie⁴⁵/


包包㘝㘝

/pau̯²⁴⁻¹¹ pau̯²⁴ ŋi̯ap̚² ŋi̯ap̚²/

/pau̯²⁴⁻¹¹ pau̯²⁴ ŋi̯ap̚² ŋi̯ap̚²/


公我贏，字你輸

公我赢，字你输
公我贏、字你輸
公我贏字你輸

If the coin lands on heads I win; if the coin lands on tails you lose.

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ ŋɔː¹³ jɛːŋ²¹ t͡siː²² nei̯¹³ syː⁵⁵/

heads I win, tails you lose
heads I win, tails you lose

(Cantonese, derogatory) one always wins; one wins in any scenario; heads I win, tails you lose


厚古薄今

ㄏㄡˋ ㄍㄨˇ ㄅㄛˊ ㄐㄧㄣ

хоугубоцзинь

/xoʊ̯⁵¹ ku²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu̯ɔ³⁵ t͡ɕin⁵⁵/

/hɐu̯¹³ kuː³⁵ pɔːk̚² kɐm⁵⁵/

/xoʊ̯⁵¹ ku²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu̯ɔ³⁵ t͡ɕin⁵⁵/

/hɐu̯¹³ kuː³⁵ pɔːk̚² kɐm⁵⁵/

to set great store by the past but look down on the present


謙沖自牧

ㄑㄧㄢ ㄔㄨㄥ ㄗˋ ㄇㄨˋ

цяньчунцзыму

/t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ mu⁵¹/

/hiːm⁵⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡siː²² mʊk̚²/

/t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ mu⁵¹/

/hiːm⁵⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡siː²² mʊk̚²/

using humility in practicing self-cultivation


慎始敬終

ㄕㄣˋ ㄕˇ ㄐㄧㄥˋ ㄓㄨㄥ

шэньшицзинчжун

/ʂən⁵¹ ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕiŋ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵/

/ʂən⁵¹ ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕiŋ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵/

to be cautious and careful from beginning to end


喪權辱國

ㄙㄤˋ ㄑㄩㄢˊ ㄖㄨˇ ㄍㄨㄛˊ

ㄙㄤˋ ㄑㄩㄢˊ ㄖㄨˋ ㄍㄨㄛˊ

санцюаньжуго

/sɑŋ⁵¹ t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn³⁵ ʐu²¹⁴⁻²¹ ku̯ɔ³⁵/

/sɑŋ⁵¹ t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn³⁵ ʐu⁵¹ ku̯ɔ³⁵/

/sɔːŋ³³ kʰyːn²¹ jʊk̚² kʷɔːk̚³/

/sɑŋ⁵¹ t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn³⁵ ʐu²¹⁴⁻²¹ ku̯ɔ³⁵/

/sɑŋ⁵¹ t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn³⁵ ʐu⁵¹ ku̯ɔ³⁵/

/sɔːŋ³³ kʰyːn²¹ jʊk̚² kʷɔːk̚³/

to cause the country to lose its sovereignty and be humiliated


防患於未然

ㄈㄤˊ ㄏㄨㄢˋ ㄩˊ ㄨㄟˋ ㄖㄢˊ

фанхуань юй вэйжань

/fɑŋ³⁵ xu̯än⁵¹ y³⁵ weɪ̯⁵¹ ʐän³⁵/

/fɔːŋ²¹ waːn²² jyː⁵⁵ mei̯²² jiːn²¹/

/huaŋ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ huaŋ³⁵⁻¹¹ i³³⁻²³ bue¹¹ d͡ziaŋ⁵⁵/

/fɑŋ³⁵ xu̯än⁵¹ y³⁵ weɪ̯⁵¹ ʐän³⁵/

/fɔːŋ²¹ waːn²² jyː⁵⁵ mei̯²² jiːn²¹/

to take preventative measures before a disaster occurs; to prevent trouble before it happens


防患未然

ㄈㄤˊ ㄏㄨㄢˋ ㄨㄟˋ ㄖㄢˊ

фанхуаньвэйжань

/fɑŋ³⁵ xu̯än⁵¹⁻⁵³ weɪ̯⁵¹ ʐän³⁵/

/fɔːŋ²¹ waːn²² mei̯²² jiːn²¹/

/hɔŋ²⁴⁻²² huan²²⁻²¹ bi²²⁻²¹ liɛn²⁴/

/hɔŋ²³⁻³³ huan³³⁻²¹ bi³³⁻²¹ ziɛn²³/

/fɑŋ³⁵ xu̯än⁵¹⁻⁵³ weɪ̯⁵¹ ʐän³⁵/

/fɔːŋ²¹ waːn²² mei̯²² jiːn²¹/

/hɔŋ²⁴⁻²² huan²²⁻²¹ bi²²⁻²¹ liɛn²⁴/

/hɔŋ²³⁻³³ huan³³⁻²¹ bi³³⁻²¹ ziɛn²³/


魏晉風度

ㄨㄟˋ ㄐㄧㄣˋ ㄈㄥ ㄉㄨˋ

вэйцзиньфэнду

/weɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕin⁵¹ fɤŋ⁵⁵ tu⁵¹/

/weɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕin⁵¹ fɤŋ⁵⁵ tu⁵¹/

(historical) the unrestrained behaviour of the literati during the Wei and Jin dynasties (220-420), characterized by heaving drinking, drug taking, intellectual discussion and retreat to nature


妥了

/tʰu̯ɔ²¹⁴ lə⁴/

/tʰu̯ɔ²¹⁴ lə⁴/

(colloquial) that's enough; that'll do; to be done; to be ready


四鄰八舍

ㄙˋ ㄌㄧㄣˊ ㄅㄚ ㄕㄜˋ

/sz̩⁵¹ lin³⁵ pä⁵⁵ ʂɤ⁵¹/

/sei̯³³ lɵn²¹ paːt̚³ sɛː³³/

/si⁴⁵ lin¹³ pa̠²⁴ ʂɤ̞⁴⁵/

/ɕi⁴⁵ lin¹³ pa̠²⁴ sɤ̞⁴⁵/

/sz̩⁵¹ lin³⁵ pä⁵⁵ ʂɤ⁵¹/

/sei̯³³ lɵn²¹ paːt̚³ sɛː³³/

/si⁴⁵ lin¹³ pa̠²⁴ ʂɤ̞⁴⁵/

/ɕi⁴⁵ lin¹³ pa̠²⁴ sɤ̞⁴⁵/

all the neighbors; the neighbors all around


成人之美

ㄔㄥˊ ㄖㄣˊ ㄓ ㄇㄟˇ

чэнжэньчжимэй

čɛnžɛnʹčžimɛj

/ʈ͡ʂʰɤŋ³⁵ ʐən³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ meɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/ʈ͡ʂʰɤŋ³⁵ ʐən³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ meɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

The Master said, "The superior man seeks to perfect the admirable qualities of men, and does not seek to perfect their bad qualities. The mean man does the opposite of this."

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

Zǐ yuē: “Jūnzǐ chéng rén zhī měi, bù chéng rén zhī è. Xiǎorén fǎn shì.”

子曰：「君子成人之美，不成人之惡。小人反是。」

子曰：「君子成人之美，不成人之恶。小人反是。」

to help or encourage someone accomplish something; to assist

The Spring and Autumn Annals make good on the virtues of its protagonists, but not their vices.

Commentary of Guliang, circa 206 BCE– 9 CE

“Chūnqiū” chéngrénzhīměi, bù chéng rén zhī è.

《春秋》成人之美，不成人之惡。

《春秋》成人之美，不成人之恶。

(chiefly literary) to magnify other people's virtue; to make good someone's honourable intentions


生靈塗炭

ㄕㄥ ㄌㄧㄥˊ ㄊㄨˊ ㄊㄢˋ

шэнлинтутань

/ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ liŋ³⁵ tʰu³⁵ tʰän⁵¹/

/sɐŋ⁵⁵ lɪŋ²¹ tʰou̯²¹ tʰaːn³³/

/ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ liŋ³⁵ tʰu³⁵ tʰän⁵¹/

/sɐŋ⁵⁵ lɪŋ²¹ tʰou̯²¹ tʰaːn³³/

the people are living in extreme suffering and misery


和衷共濟

ㄏㄜˊ ㄓㄨㄥ ㄍㄨㄥˋ ㄐㄧˋ

хэчжунгунцзи

/xɤ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵ kʊŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi⁵¹/

/wɔː²¹ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ kʊŋ²² t͡sɐi̯³³/

/xɤ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵ kʊŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi⁵¹/

/wɔː²¹ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ kʊŋ²² t͡sɐi̯³³/

Comrades! At today's conference, I also want to represent the Party Central Committee and the State Council to call on the whole Party, the whole Army and the people of all ethnic groups in the whole country to work together to overcome the difficulties, unite and act immediately, and contribute to stopping the turmoil and stabilizing the situation in their respective positions.

1989 May 19, 李鹏 (Li Peng), 在首都党政军干部大会上李鹏同志的讲话 [Speech by Comrade Li Peng at the Conference of Party, Government and Military Cadres in the Capital], on 中华人民共和国国务院公报 1989年第9号

Tóngzhì men! Zài jīntiān de dàhuì shàng, wǒ hái yào dàibiǎo dǎngzhōngyāng hé Guówùyuàn, hàozhào quándǎng quánjūn quánguó gè zú rénmín, hézhōnggòngjì, tuánjié yīzhì, lìjí xíngdòng qǐlái, zài gèzì de gǎngwèi shàng wèi zhìzhǐ dòngluàn hé wěndìng júshì zuòchū gòngxiàn.

同志們！在今天的大會上，我還要代表黨中央和國務院，號召全黨全軍全國各族人民，和衷共濟，團結一致，立即行動起來，在各自的崗位上為制止動亂和穩定局勢做出貢獻。

同志们！在今天的大会上，我还要代表党中央和国务院，号召全党全军全国各族人民，和衷共济，团结一致，立即行动起来，在各自的岗位上为制止动乱和稳定局势做出贡献。

to work together to overcome difficulties


……大法好

... ㄉㄚˋ ㄈㄚˇ ㄏㄠˇ

... дафа хао

/tä⁵¹ fä²¹⁴⁻³⁵ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/tä⁵¹ fä²¹⁴⁻³⁵ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

Back-formation from 法輪大法好／法轮大法好 (Fǎlún Dàfǎ hǎo, “Falun Gong is good”), a slogan of Falun Gong.

zh-l

百合大法好！

Arch大法好！

Praise Sony, and may Heaven destroy Nintendo.

索尼大法好，天滅任地獄

索尼大法好，天灭任地狱

2018 May 12, 御坂0x4e21 (username), answer to the question “男朋友养成了女朋友是一种怎样的体验？”, on Zhihu

GQ大法好！


濕古淋當

(Sichuanese, derogatory) dripping wet; soaking wet; drenched


白頭人送黑頭人

ㄅㄞˊ ㄊㄡˊ ㄖㄣˊ ㄙㄨㄥˋ ㄏㄟ ㄊㄡˊ ㄖㄣˊ

байтоу жэнь сун хэйтоу жэнь

/paɪ̯³⁵ tʰoʊ̯³⁵ ʐən³⁵ sʊŋ⁵¹ xeɪ̯⁵⁵ tʰoʊ̯³⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/paːk̚² tʰɐu̯²¹ jɐn²¹ sʊŋ³³ hɐk̚⁵ tʰɐu̯²¹ jɐn²¹/

/paːk̚² tʰɐu̯²¹ jɐn²¹ sʊŋ³³ haːk̚⁵ tʰɐu̯²¹ jɐn²¹/

白髮人送黑髮人 白髮人送黑髮人#Chinese

白发人送黑发人 白发人送黑发人#Chinese

Synonym of 白髮人送黑髮人／白发人送黑发人 (báifàrén sòng hēifàrén, “to see one's child die earlier than oneself”)


有來有往

ㄧㄡˇ ㄌㄞˊ ㄧㄡˇ ㄨㄤˇ

/joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ laɪ̯³⁵ joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ wɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jɐu̯¹³ lɔːi̯²¹ jɐu̯¹³ wɔːŋ¹³/

/jɐu̯¹³ lɔːi̯²¹ jɐu̯¹³ wɔːŋ¹³/


臨時抱佛腳

to grab the Buddha's feet at the last minute

ㄌㄧㄣˊ ㄕˊ ㄅㄠˋ ㄈㄛˊ ㄐㄧㄠˇ

линьши бао фоцзяо

/lin³⁵ ʂʐ̩³⁵ pɑʊ̯⁵¹ fu̯ɔ³⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/lɐm²¹ siː²¹ pʰou̯¹³ fɐt̚² kœːk̚³/

/lin²² zz̩⁴⁴ bɔ²³ vəʔ¹¹ t͡ɕiaʔ²³/

/lɐm²¹ siː²¹ pʰou̯¹³ fɐt̚² kœːk̚³/

/lin²² zz̩⁴⁴ bɔ²³ vəʔ¹¹ t͡ɕiaʔ²³/

to do something hurriedly only at the last minute; to make a last-minute effort, especially studying for examinations


見風轉舵

ㄐㄧㄢˋ ㄈㄥ ㄓㄨㄢˇ ㄉㄨㄛˋ

цзяньфэнчжуаньдо

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ fɤŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂu̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹ tu̯ɔ⁵¹/

/kiːn³³ fʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡syːn³⁵ tʰɔː²¹/

/kiːn³³ fʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡syːn³³ tʰɔː²¹/

/t͡ɕiɛn³⁵ fuŋ⁴² t͡sɵn²¹³⁻²⁴ tʰo¹¹/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ fɤŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂu̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹ tu̯ɔ⁵¹/

/kiːn³³ fʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡syːn³⁵ tʰɔː²¹/

/kiːn³³ fʊŋ⁵⁵ t͡syːn³³ tʰɔː²¹/

/t͡ɕiɛn³⁵ fuŋ⁴² t͡sɵn²¹³⁻²⁴ tʰo¹¹/

to bend with the wind; to change one's position, attitude, behaviour, etc. depending on the situation


看風使舵

ㄎㄢˋ ㄈㄥ ㄕˇ ㄉㄨㄛˋ

/kʰän⁵¹ fɤŋ⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ tu̯ɔ⁵¹/

/hɔːn³³ fʊŋ⁵⁵ sɐi̯³⁵ tʰɔː²¹/

/kʰän⁵¹ fɤŋ⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ tu̯ɔ⁵¹/

/hɔːn³³ fʊŋ⁵⁵ sɐi̯³⁵ tʰɔː²¹/

to bend with the wind; to change one's position, attitude, behaviour, etc. depending on the situation (usually with negative connotation)


橫行霸道

ㄏㄥˊ ㄒㄧㄥˊ ㄅㄚˋ ㄉㄠˋ

/xɤŋ³⁵ ɕiŋ³⁵ pä⁵¹⁻⁵³ tɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/waːŋ²¹ hɐŋ²¹ paː³³ tou̯²²/

/ɦuɑ̃²² ɦin⁵⁵ po³³ dɔ²¹/

/xɤŋ³⁵ ɕiŋ³⁵ pä⁵¹⁻⁵³ tɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/waːŋ²¹ hɐŋ²¹ paː³³ tou̯²²/

/ɦuɑ̃²² ɦin⁵⁵ po³³ dɔ²¹/

to act in a fierce, domineering and unreasonable way


胡作非為

ㄏㄨˊ ㄗㄨㄛˋ ㄈㄟ ㄨㄟˊ

/xu³⁵ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ feɪ̯⁵⁵ weɪ̯³⁵/

/wuː²¹ t͡sɔːk̚³ fei̯⁵⁵ wɐi̯²¹/

/hɔ²⁴⁻¹¹ t͡sɔk̚³²⁻⁴ hui⁴⁴⁻³³ ui²⁴/

/hɔ²³⁻³³ t͡sɔk̚³²⁻⁴ hui⁴⁴⁻³³ ui²³/

/hu⁵⁵⁻¹¹ t͡sak̚² hui³³⁻²³ ui⁵⁵/

/xu³⁵ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ feɪ̯⁵⁵ weɪ̯³⁵/

/wuː²¹ t͡sɔːk̚³ fei̯⁵⁵ wɐi̯²¹/

/hɔ²⁴⁻¹¹ t͡sɔk̚³²⁻⁴ hui⁴⁴⁻³³ ui²⁴/

/hɔ²³⁻³³ t͡sɔk̚³²⁻⁴ hui⁴⁴⁻³³ ui²³/

/hu⁵⁵⁻¹¹ t͡sak̚² hui³³⁻²³ ui⁵⁵/

Nǐwǒ jìrán yào chéngquán zhège nǚhái'ér, qǐ yǒu yóu tā húzuòfēiwèi, shēn rù kōngmén zhī lǐ?

你我既然要成全這個女孩兒，豈有由他胡作非為、身入空門之理？

你我既然要成全这个女孩儿，岂有由他胡作非为、身入空门之理？

Wěide méiyǒu dǔbó, xiǎode shì jīngguò lǎoyé jiàoxùn guò de, zài bùgǎn húzuòfēiwèi.

委的沒有賭博，小的是經過老爺教訓過的，再不敢胡作非為。

委的没有赌博，小的是经过老爷教训过的，再不敢胡作非为。

to disregard rules and do evil as one pleases; to act wildly in defiance or public opinion or the law


同生共死

ㄊㄨㄥˊ ㄕㄥ ㄍㄨㄥˋ ㄙˇ

/tʰʊŋ³⁵ ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ kʊŋ⁵¹ sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/tʰʊŋ²¹ sɐŋ⁵⁵ kʊŋ²² sei̯³⁵/

/tʰʊŋ³⁵ ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ kʊŋ⁵¹ sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/tʰʊŋ²¹ sɐŋ⁵⁵ kʊŋ²² sei̯³⁵/


天作之合

ㄊㄧㄢ ㄗㄨㄛˋ ㄓ ㄏㄜˊ

тяньцзочжихэ

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ xɤ³⁵/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ t͡sɔːk̚³ t͡siː⁵⁵ hɐp̚²/

/tʰiɛn⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sɔk̚³²⁻⁴ t͡si⁴⁴⁻²² hap̚⁴/

/tʰiɛn³³ t͡sɔk̚⁵⁻²⁴ t͡si³³ hap̚²⁴/

/tʰiɛn⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sɔk̚³²⁻⁵ t͡si⁴⁴⁻²² hap̚¹²¹/

/tʰiɛn⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sɔk̚³²⁻⁴ t͡si⁴⁴⁻³³ hap̚⁴/

/tʰiɛn⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sɔk̚³²⁻⁴ t͡si⁴⁴⁻³³ hap̚⁴/

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ xɤ³⁵/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ t͡sɔːk̚³ t͡siː⁵⁵ hɐp̚²/

/tʰiɛn⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sɔk̚³²⁻⁴ t͡si⁴⁴⁻²² hap̚⁴/

/tʰiɛn³³ t͡sɔk̚⁵⁻²⁴ t͡si³³ hap̚²⁴/

/tʰiɛn⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sɔk̚³²⁻⁴ t͡si⁴⁴⁻³³ hap̚⁴/

/tʰiɛn⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sɔk̚³²⁻⁴ t͡si⁴⁴⁻³³ hap̚⁴/

From the Classic of Poetry, poem 236 (《詩經·大雅·大明》)

lang

(《詩經·大雅·大明》)

(《詩經·大雅·大明》)

Heaven surveyed this lower world; And its appointment lighted [on king Wen].
In his early years, It made for him a mate.

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

Tiān jiān zàixià, yǒu mìng jì jí.
Wénwáng chū zǎi, tiān zuò zhī hé.

天監在下，有命既集。
文王初載，天作之合。

天监在下，有命既集。
文王初载，天作之合。

heaven-made match; a match made in heaven


十年八載

ㄕˊ ㄋㄧㄢˊ ㄅㄚ ㄗㄞˇ

шиняньбацзай

/ʂʐ̩³⁵ ni̯ɛn³⁵ pä⁵⁵ t͡saɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/sɐp̚² niːn²¹ paːt̚³ t͡sɔːi̯³⁵/

/ʂʐ̩³⁵ ni̯ɛn³⁵ pä⁵⁵ t͡saɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/sɐp̚² niːn²¹ paːt̚³ t͡sɔːi̯³⁵/

(chiefly Cantonese) about ten years; many years


辯才無礙

ㄅㄧㄢˋ ㄘㄞˊ ㄨˊ ㄞˋ

/pi̯ɛn⁵¹ t͡sʰaɪ̯³⁵ u³⁵ ˀaɪ̯⁵¹/

/pi̯ɛn⁵¹ t͡sʰaɪ̯³⁵ u³⁵ ˀaɪ̯⁵¹/

(figurative) extremely eloquent; unobstructed eloquence


缺一不可

ㄑㄩㄝ ㄧ ㄅㄨˋ ㄎㄜˇ

/t͡ɕʰy̯ɛ⁵⁵ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ 不ke²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/kʰyːt̚³ jɐt̚⁵ pɐt̚⁵ hɔː³⁵/

/t͡ɕʰy̯ɛ⁵⁵ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ 不ke²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/kʰyːt̚³ jɐt̚⁵ pɐt̚⁵ hɔː³⁵/

not a single one is dispensable; none can be absent


搖擺不定

ㄧㄠˊ ㄅㄞˇ ㄅㄨˋ ㄉㄧㄥˋ

/jɑʊ̯³⁵ paɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ tiŋ⁵¹/

/jiːu̯²¹ paːi̯³⁵ pɐt̚⁵ tɪŋ²²/

/io²⁴⁻²² pai⁵³⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁴ tiɪŋ²²/

/io²⁴⁻²² pai⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ put̚⁵⁻²⁴ tiɪŋ⁴¹/

/io¹³⁻²² pai⁵³⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁵ tiɪŋ²²/

/io²⁴⁻¹¹ pai⁵³⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁴ tiɪŋ³³/

/iɤ²³⁻³³ pai⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁴ tiɪŋ³³/

/jɑʊ̯³⁵ paɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ tiŋ⁵¹/

/jiːu̯²¹ paːi̯³⁵ pɐt̚⁵ tɪŋ²²/

/io²⁴⁻²² pai⁵³⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁴ tiɪŋ²²/

/io²⁴⁻²² pai⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ put̚⁵⁻²⁴ tiɪŋ⁴¹/

/io¹³⁻²² pai⁵³⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁵ tiɪŋ²²/

/io²⁴⁻¹¹ pai⁵³⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁴ tiɪŋ³³/

/iɤ²³⁻³³ pai⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ put̚³²⁻⁴ tiɪŋ³³/


行差踏錯

/haːŋ²¹ t͡sʰaː⁵⁵ taːp̚² t͡sʰɔː³³/

/haːŋ²¹ t͡sʰaː⁵⁵ taːp̚² t͡sʰɔː³³/

(Cantonese) to fall into the wrong path (in life); to go astray


越描越黑

the more you draw, the blacker the picture becomes

ㄩㄝˋ ㄇㄧㄠˊ ㄩㄝˋ ㄏㄟ

/ɥɛ⁵¹ mi̯ɑʊ̯³⁵ ɥɛ⁵¹ xeɪ̯⁵⁵/

/jyːt̚² miːu̯²¹ jyːt̚² hɐk̚⁵/

/ɥɛ⁵¹ mi̯ɑʊ̯³⁵ ɥɛ⁵¹ xeɪ̯⁵⁵/

/jyːt̚² miːu̯²¹ jyːt̚² hɐk̚⁵/

Overexplaining makes things worse; the more you explain, the guiltier you look.


半暝三更

/puiŋ³³ maŋ³³ saŋ⁵⁴ kaŋ⁵⁴/

/puaŋ²¹³⁻⁵⁵ maŋ⁵³⁽⁻²¹⁾ saŋ⁵⁵ kaŋ⁵⁵/

/pũã²¹³⁻⁵⁵ me⁵⁵⁻¹¹ sã³³⁻²³ kẽ³³/

/puiŋ³³ maŋ³³ saŋ⁵⁴ kaŋ⁵⁴/

/puaŋ²¹³⁻⁵⁵ maŋ⁵³⁽⁻²¹⁾ saŋ⁵⁵ kaŋ⁵⁵/

/pũã²¹³⁻⁵⁵ me⁵⁵⁻¹¹ sã³³⁻²³ kẽ³³/

(Northern Min, Eastern Min, Zhao'an Hokkien, Teochew) in the middle of the night; late at night


蛇鼠一窩

ㄕㄜˊ ㄕㄨˇ ㄧ ㄨㄛ

/ʂɤ³⁵ ʂu²¹⁴⁻²¹ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ wɔ⁵⁵/

/sɛː²¹ syː³⁵ jɐt̚⁵ wɔː⁵⁵/

/ʂɤ³⁵ ʂu²¹⁴⁻²¹ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ wɔ⁵⁵/

/sɛː²¹ syː³⁵ jɐt̚⁵ wɔː⁵⁵/

(of bad people) to be working together; to be acting in collusion with one another


瑰意琦行

ㄍㄨㄟ ㄧˋ ㄑㄧˊ ㄒㄧㄥˊ

/ku̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ i⁵¹ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ ɕiŋ³⁵/

/ku̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ i⁵¹ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ ɕiŋ³⁵/


插科打諢

(of anactor of traditional Chinese opera) to make people laugh through actions and jokes (during a performance)

ㄔㄚ ㄎㄜ ㄉㄚˇ ㄏㄨㄣˋ

/ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵ kʰɤ⁵⁵ tä²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu̯ən⁵¹/

/t͡sʰaːp̚³ fɔː⁵⁵ taː³⁵ wɐn²²/

/ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵ kʰɤ⁵⁵ tä²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu̯ən⁵¹/

/t͡sʰaːp̚³ fɔː⁵⁵ taː³⁵ wɐn²²/

Zuo Lengchan originally designed this ceremony for a combination of the Five Mountain Sword Sects as a solemn and grand one which could make all the warriors in China revere it. Six naughty guys who suddenly appeared, however, made a ceremony which should be grand look like a trivial one by jesting and teasing […]

1969 October 12, Jin Yong, The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, chapter 32

Zuǒ Lěngchán chóuhuà zhè yīchǎng wǔyuè bìngpài, yuán nǐ bànde zhuāngyán lóngzhòng, hǎo jiào tiānxià yīngxióng qí shēng jìngwèi zhī xīn, bùliào xiécìlǐ zuànle zhè liùgè bèilǎn jiāhuo chūlái, chākēdǎhùn, jiāng yīgè shèngdà de diǎnlǐ gǎode hǎosì yīchǎng érxì

左冷禪籌劃這一場五嶽並派，原擬辦得莊嚴隆重，好教天下英雄齊生敬畏之心，不料斜刺里鑽了這六個憊懶家伙出來，插科打諢，將一個盛大的典禮搞得好似一場兒戲

左冷禅筹划这一场五岳并派，原拟办得庄严隆重，好教天下英雄齐生敬畏之心，不料斜刺里钻了这六个惫懒家伙出来，插科打诨，将一个盛大的典礼搞得好似一场儿戏

to jest; to joke; to tell a joke; to crack a joke; to wisecrack


鴨仔聽雷

/ap̚² e³¹⁻¹¹ tʰaŋ²⁴ lu̯i¹¹/

/ap̚² e³¹ tʰaŋ²⁴ lu̯i¹¹/

/a(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ a⁵³ tʰiã⁴⁴⁻²² lui²⁴/

/a(ʔ)⁵ a⁵⁵⁴ tʰiã³³ lui²⁴/

/a(ʔ)³²⁻⁴⁴ a⁵³ tʰiã⁴⁴⁻²² lui¹³/

/a(ʔ)³²⁻⁴⁴ a⁵³ tʰiã⁴⁴⁻³³ lui²⁴/

/a(ʔ)³²⁻⁴⁴ a⁴¹ tʰiã⁴⁴⁻³³ lui²³/

/ap̚² e³¹⁻¹¹ tʰaŋ²⁴ lu̯i¹¹/

/ap̚² e³¹ tʰaŋ²⁴ lu̯i¹¹/

/a(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ a⁵³ tʰiã⁴⁴⁻²² lui²⁴/

/a(ʔ)⁵ a⁵⁵⁴ tʰiã³³ lui²⁴/

/a(ʔ)³²⁻⁴⁴ a⁵³ tʰiã⁴⁴⁻²² lui¹³/

/a(ʔ)³²⁻⁴⁴ a⁵³ tʰiã⁴⁴⁻³³ lui²⁴/

/a(ʔ)³²⁻⁴⁴ a⁴¹ tʰiã⁴⁴⁻³³ lui²³/

(Hakka, Hokkien) to not know what someone is driving at; to be unintelligible; to be completely beyond one's comprehension


六月大菜——假有心

/lak̚⁴⁻² ɡueʔ⁴ tua¹¹ t͡sʰai²¹³ ke⁵²⁻³⁵ u³⁵⁻¹¹ sim³³/

Chinese mustard is only ready to be harvested in the winter, so one that is harvested in June (summer) is not mature yet, hence lacking a core ("heart").

June Chinese mustard ― falsely has a heart


菜脯搵豆油——加工

/t͡sʰai²¹⁻⁵³ pɔ⁵³ un²¹⁻⁵³ tau²²⁻²¹ iu²⁴ ke⁴⁴⁻²² kaŋ⁴⁴/

/t͡sʰai⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ pɔ⁵⁵⁴ un⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ tau⁴¹⁻²² iu²⁴ ke³³ kaŋ³³/

/t͡sʰai²¹⁻⁵³ pɔ⁵³ un²¹⁻⁵³ tau²²⁻²¹ iu¹³ ke⁴⁴⁻²² kaŋ⁴⁴/

/t͡sʰai¹¹⁻⁵³ pɔ⁵³ un¹¹⁻⁵³ tau³³⁻¹¹ iu²⁴ ke⁴⁴⁻³³ kaŋ⁴⁴/

/t͡sʰai²¹⁻⁴¹ pɔ⁴¹ un²¹⁻⁴¹ tau³³⁻²¹ iu²³ ke⁴⁴⁻³³ kaŋ⁴⁴/

Preserved radish is already salty, so to dip in in soy sauce, which is also salty, is performing an action that is unnecessary.

Dip preserved radish in soy sauce ― do extra work


徒勞無功

ㄊㄨˊ ㄌㄠˊ ㄨˊ ㄍㄨㄥ

/tʰu³⁵ lɑʊ̯³⁵ u³⁵ kʊŋ⁵⁵/

/tʰou̯²¹ lou̯²¹ mou̯²¹ kʊŋ⁵⁵/

/tʰu³⁵ lɑʊ̯³⁵ u³⁵ kʊŋ⁵⁵/

/tʰou̯²¹ lou̯²¹ mou̯²¹ kʊŋ⁵⁵/

to make a futile effort; to work fruitlessly


小和尚念經——有口無心

Little monk recites scripture ― has a mouth but no heart

ㄒㄧㄠˇ ㄏㄜˊ ㄕㄤˋ ㄋㄧㄢˋ ㄐㄧㄥ

ㄧㄡˊ ㄎㄡˇ ㄨˊ ㄒㄧㄣ

сяо хэшан няньцзин

ю коу у синь

/ɕi̯ɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ xɤ³⁵ ʂɑŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ni̯ɛn⁵¹ t͡ɕiŋ⁵⁵ joʊ̯³⁵ kʰoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ u³⁵ ɕin⁵⁵/

to not fully understand; to be half-hearted


食飯用碗公，做代誌閃西風

head

食飯用碗公，做代誌閃西風

食饭用碗公，做代志闪西风

consume a big bowl of rice when eating, but run away as fast as westerly when (asked to) work

/t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ pŋ̍²² iɪŋ²²⁻²¹ uã⁵³⁻⁴⁴ kɔŋ⁴⁴ t͡sue²¹⁻⁵³ tai²²⁻²¹ t͡si²¹ siam⁵³⁻⁴⁴ sai⁴⁴⁻²² hɔŋ⁴⁴/

/t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻¹¹ pŋ̍³³ iɪŋ³³⁻¹¹ uã⁵³⁻⁴⁴ kɔŋ⁴⁴ t͡sue¹¹⁻⁵³ tai³³⁻¹¹ t͡si¹¹ siam⁵³⁻⁴⁴ sai⁴⁴⁻³³ hɔŋ⁴⁴/

/t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ pŋ̍³³ iɪŋ³³⁻²¹ uã⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ kɔŋ⁴⁴ t͡sɤ²¹⁻⁴¹ tai³³⁻²¹ t͡si²¹ siam⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ sai⁴⁴⁻³³ hɔŋ⁴⁴/

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


三跤貓笑一目狗

三跤猫笑一目狗
三骹貓笑一目狗

/sã⁴⁴⁻²² kʰa⁴⁴⁻²² niãu⁴⁴ t͡sʰio²¹⁻⁵³ t͡sit̚⁴⁻³² bak̚⁴⁻³² kau⁵³/

/sã³³ kʰa³³ niãu³³ t͡sʰio⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ t͡sit̚²⁴⁻² bak̚²⁴⁻² kau⁵⁵⁴/

/sã⁴⁴⁻²² kʰa⁴⁴⁻²² niãu⁴⁴ t͡sʰio²¹⁻⁵³ t͡sit̚¹²¹⁻²¹ bak̚¹²¹⁻²¹ kau⁵³/

pot calling the kettle black
pot calling the kettle black


石榴皮熬鹽——鹹澀

cook pomegranate skin in salt ― salty and bitter / stingy

/sioʔ⁴⁻² liu⁵⁵⁻¹¹ pʰue⁵⁵ ŋau⁵⁵⁻¹¹ iam⁵⁵ kiam⁵⁵⁻¹¹ siap̚²/


囡仔穿大人衫——大軀

/ɡin⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ a⁴¹ t͡sʰiɪŋ³³⁻²¹ tua³³⁻²¹ laŋ²³ sã⁴⁴ tua³³⁻²¹ su⁴⁴/

/ɡin⁵³⁻⁴⁴ a⁵³ t͡sʰiɪŋ³³⁻¹¹ tua³³⁻¹¹ laŋ²⁴ sã⁴⁴ tua³³⁻¹¹ su⁴⁴/

/ɡin⁵³⁻⁴⁴ a⁵³ t͡sʰiɪŋ²²⁻²¹ tua²²⁻²¹ laŋ²⁴ sã⁴⁴ tua²²⁻²¹ su⁴⁴/

大軀 (tōa su, “a big set of clothes”) is a homophone of 大輸 (tōa su, “to lose badly”).

囡仔穿大人衫——大躯
囝仔穿大人衫──大軀
囝仔穿大人衫——大襲
囡仔穿大人衫——大套
囝仔穿大人衫——大套

child wears adult shirt ― big set of clothes


食飯三碗公，作穡閃西風

consume three bowls of rice when eating, but run away as fast as westerly when (asked to) farm

/t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ pŋ̍²² sã⁴⁴⁻²² uã⁵³⁻⁴⁴ kaŋ⁴⁴ t͡so(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ sit̚³² siam⁵³⁻⁴⁴ sai⁴⁴⁻²² huaŋ⁴⁴/

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


上卌𣍐攝

上卌袂攝
上𠦜沒攝
上卌𫧃摄

/t͡siũ³³⁻²¹ siap̚³²⁻⁴ be³³⁻²¹ liap̚³²/

/t͡siũ³³⁻¹¹ siap̚³²⁻⁴ bue³³⁻¹¹ liap̚³²/

/t͡siũ³³⁻²¹ siap̚³²⁻⁴ be³³⁻²¹ liap̚³²/

/t͡siũ³³⁻¹¹ siap̚³²⁻⁴ bue³³⁻¹¹ liap̚³²/

(Hokkien) to go into one's middle age and feel less capable; midlife crisis


外甥打燈籠——照舊

ㄨㄞˋ ㄕㄥ ㄉㄚˇ ㄉㄥ ㄌㄨㄥˊ

вайшэн да дэнлун

/waɪ̯⁵¹ ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ tä²¹⁴⁻²¹ tɤŋ⁵⁵ lʊŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵¹/

照舊／照旧 (zhàojiù, “to be as before”) is a pun on the homophone 照舅 (zhào jiù, “to shine on one's maternal uncle”).

zh-l

nephew carries a lantern ― to be as before


𣍐曉剃頭，拄著鬍鬚

𫧃晓剃头，拄著胡须
袂曉剃頭，拄著鬍鬚

/be²²⁻²¹ hiau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ tʰi²¹⁻⁵³ tʰau²⁴ tu⁵³⁻⁴⁴ tio(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ hɔ²⁴⁻²² t͡sʰiu⁴⁴/

/be⁴¹⁻²² hiau⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ tʰi⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ tʰau²⁴ tu⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ tio(ʔ)²⁴⁻² hɔ²⁴⁻²² t͡sʰiu³³/

/be²²⁻²¹ hiau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ tʰi²¹⁻⁵³ tʰau¹³ tu⁵³⁻⁴⁴ tio(ʔ)¹²¹⁻²¹ hɔ¹³⁻²² t͡sʰiu⁴⁴/

/be³³⁻¹¹ hiau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ tʰi¹¹⁻⁵³ tʰau²⁴ tu⁵³⁻⁴⁴ tio(ʔ)⁴⁻¹¹ hɔ²⁴⁻¹¹ t͡sʰiu⁴⁴/

/be³³⁻²¹ hiau⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ tʰi²¹⁻⁴¹ tʰau²³ tu⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ tiɤ(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ hɔ²³⁻³³ t͡sʰiu⁴⁴/

(figurative, Southern Min) to be in an unfamiliar situation


少年𣍐曉想，食老毋成樣

少年袂曉想，食老毋成樣
少年𫧃晓想，食老毋成样

/siau²¹⁻⁴¹ liɛn²³⁻³³ be³³⁻²¹ hiau⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ siũ³³ t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ lau³³⁻²¹ m̩³³⁻²¹ t͡siã²³⁻³³ iũ³³/

/siau⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ liɛn²⁴⁻²² bue²² hiau⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ siũ²² t͡sia(ʔ)²⁴⁻² lau²² m̩⁴¹⁻²² t͡siã²⁴⁻²² iũ⁴¹/

/siau²¹⁻⁵³ liɛn²⁴⁻²² bue²²⁻²¹ hiau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ siũ²² t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ lau²²⁻²¹ m̩²²⁻²¹ t͡siã²⁴⁻²² iũ²²/

/siau²¹⁻⁴² liɛn²⁴⁻²¹ bue²²⁻²¹ hiau⁴²⁻²⁴ siũ²² t͡sia(ʔ)⁴³⁻²¹ lau²²⁻²¹ m̩²²⁻²¹ t͡siã²⁴⁻²¹ iũ²²/

/siau¹¹⁻⁵³ liɛn²⁴⁻¹¹ bue³³⁻¹¹ hiau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ siũ³³ t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻¹¹ lau³³⁻¹¹ m̩³³⁻¹¹ t͡siã²⁴⁻¹¹ iũ³³/

/siau²¹⁻⁵³ liɛn¹³⁻²² be²²⁻²¹ hiau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ siɔ̃²² t͡sia(ʔ)¹²¹⁻²¹ lau²²⁻²¹ m̩²²⁻²¹ t͡siã¹³⁻²² iɔ̃²²/

(Southern Min) if you don't think when you're young, you won't have a decent life in old age


龍陽之好

ㄌㄨㄥˊ ㄧㄤˊ ㄓ ㄏㄠˋ

лунъянчжихао

/lʊŋ³⁵ jɑŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ xɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/lʊŋ²¹ jœːŋ²¹ t͡siː⁵⁵ hou̯³³/

/lʊŋ³⁵ jɑŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ xɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/lʊŋ²¹ jœːŋ²¹ t͡siː⁵⁵ hou̯³³/


駁嘴駁舌

/pɔːk̚³ t͡sɵy̯³⁵ pɔːk̚³ siːt̚³/

/pɔːk̚³ t͡sɵy̯³⁵ pɔːk̚³ siːt̚²/

/pɔːk̚³ t͡sɵy̯³⁵ pɔːk̚³ siːt̚³/

/pɔːk̚³ t͡sɵy̯³⁵ pɔːk̚³ siːt̚²/

(Cantonese) to talk back; to answer back

GT - General Taiwanese (no specific region identified)


龍陽之癖

ㄌㄨㄥˊ ㄧㄤˊ ㄓ ㄆㄧˇ

ㄌㄨㄥˊ ㄧㄤˊ ㄓ ㄆㄧˋ

/lʊŋ³⁵ jɑŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ pʰi²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/lʊŋ³⁵ jɑŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ pʰi⁵¹/

/lʊŋ²¹ jœːŋ²¹ t͡siː⁵⁵ pʰɪk̚⁵/

/lʊŋ³⁵ jɑŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ pʰi²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/lʊŋ³⁵ jɑŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ pʰi⁵¹/

/lʊŋ²¹ jœːŋ²¹ t͡siː⁵⁵ pʰɪk̚⁵/


六月芥菜——假有心

/lak̚⁴⁻³² ɡe(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ kua²¹⁻⁵³ t͡sʰai²¹ ke⁵³⁻⁴⁴ u²²⁻²¹ sim⁴⁴/

/lak̚²⁴⁻² ɡə(ʔ)²⁴⁻² kua⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ t͡sʰai⁴¹ ke⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ u²² sim³³/

/lak̚¹²¹⁻²¹ ɡue(ʔ)¹²¹⁻²¹ kua²¹⁻⁵³ t͡sʰai²¹ kɛ⁵³⁻⁴⁴ u²²⁻²¹ sim⁴⁴/

/lak̚⁴⁻³² ɡue(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ kua²¹⁻⁴¹ t͡sʰai²¹ ke⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ u³³⁻²¹ sim⁴⁴/


滿天神佛

ㄇㄢˇ ㄊㄧㄢ ㄕㄣˊ ㄈㄛˊ

маньтяньшэньфо

/män²¹⁴⁻²¹ tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʂən³⁵ fu̯ɔ³⁵/

/muːn¹³ tʰiːn⁵⁵ sɐn²¹ fɐt̚²/

/män²¹⁴⁻²¹ tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʂən³⁵ fu̯ɔ³⁵/

/muːn¹³ tʰiːn⁵⁵ sɐn²¹ fɐt̚²/

there are multitudinous deities or celestial beings


履舄交錯

ㄌㄩˇ ㄒㄧˋ ㄐㄧㄠ ㄘㄨㄛˋ

люйси цзяоцо

/ly²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi⁵¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰu̯ɔ⁵¹/

/lei̯¹³ sɪk̚⁵ kaːu̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰɔː³³/

/ly²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi⁵¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰu̯ɔ⁵¹/

/lei̯¹³ sɪk̚⁵ kaːu̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰɔː³³/


喐身喐勢

/jʊk̚⁵ sɐn⁵⁵ jʊk̚⁵ sɐi̯³³/

/jʊk̚⁵ sɐn⁵⁵ jʊk̚⁵ sɐi̯³³/

(Cantonese, of a person) to keep moving and be unable to sit or stand still; to be moving one's body constantly


監守自盜

ㄐㄧㄢ ㄕㄡˇ ㄗˋ ㄉㄠˋ

цзяньшоуцзыдао

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʂoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ tɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/kaːm⁵⁵ sɐu̯³⁵ t͡siː²² tou̯²²/

/kaːm⁵⁵ sɐu̯³⁵ t͡siː²² tou̯²²/

to steal money or property one guards; to embezzle


伏惟

/fu³⁵ weɪ̯³⁵/

/fu³⁵ weɪ̯³⁵/

(humble, formal, literal) to think about a higher-class person or related ideas in a mental state of submission

in my humble opinion
in my humble opinion


溜鬚拍馬

ㄌㄧㄡ ㄒㄩ ㄆㄞ ㄇㄚˇ

/li̯oʊ̯⁵⁵ ɕy⁵⁵ pʰaɪ̯⁵⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/lɐu̯²² sou̯⁵⁵ pʰaːk̚³ maː¹³/

/li̯oʊ̯⁵⁵ ɕy⁵⁵ pʰaɪ̯⁵⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/lɐu̯²² sou̯⁵⁵ pʰaːk̚³ maː¹³/

(chiefly Mandarin, colloquial) to brownnose; to kiss someone's ass; to suck up


駕輕就熟

to drive a light carriage on a familiar route

ㄐㄧㄚˋ ㄑㄧㄥ ㄐㄧㄡˋ ㄕㄨˊ

ㄐㄧㄚˋ ㄑㄧㄥ ㄐㄧㄡˋ ㄕㄡˊ

/t͡ɕi̯ä⁵¹ t͡ɕʰiŋ⁵⁵ t͡ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵¹ ʂu³⁵/

цзяцинцзюшоу

/t͡ɕi̯ä⁵¹ t͡ɕʰiŋ⁵⁵ t͡ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵¹ ʂoʊ̯³⁵/

/kaː³³ hɛːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sɐu̯²² sʊk̚²/

/t͡ɕi̯ä⁵¹ t͡ɕʰiŋ⁵⁵ t͡ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵¹ ʂu³⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯ä⁵¹ t͡ɕʰiŋ⁵⁵ t͡ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵¹ ʂoʊ̯³⁵/

/kaː³³ hɛːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sɐu̯²² sʊk̚²/

to perform a task with which one is very familiar with great ease; (to deem a task) a piece of cake; (to go for) a hay ride


四世同堂

ㄙˋ ㄕˋ ㄊㄨㄥˊ ㄊㄤˊ

/sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹ tʰʊŋ³⁵ tʰɑŋ³⁵/

/sei̯³³ sɐi̯³³ tʰʊŋ²¹ tʰɔːŋ²¹/

/sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹ tʰʊŋ³⁵ tʰɑŋ³⁵/

/sei̯³³ sɐi̯³³ tʰʊŋ²¹ tʰɔːŋ²¹/


規年通天

/kui⁴⁴⁻²² ni²⁴⁻²¹ tʰaŋ²¹⁻⁴² tʰĩ⁴⁴/

/kui⁴⁴⁻²² nĩ¹³⁻²² tʰaŋ²¹⁻⁵³ tʰĩ⁴⁴/

/kui³³ nĩ²⁴⁻²² tʰaŋ⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ tʰĩ³³/

/kui⁴⁴⁻²² nĩ²⁴⁻²² tʰaŋ²¹⁻⁵³ tʰĩ⁴⁴/

/kui⁴⁴⁻²² ni²⁴⁻²¹ tʰaŋ²¹⁻⁴² tʰĩ⁴⁴/

/kui⁴⁴⁻²² nĩ¹³⁻²² tʰaŋ²¹⁻⁵³ tʰĩ⁴⁴/

/kui³³ nĩ²⁴⁻²² tʰaŋ⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ tʰĩ³³/

/kui⁴⁴⁻²² nĩ²⁴⁻²² tʰaŋ²¹⁻⁵³ tʰĩ⁴⁴/

(Southern Min) throughout the year; all the year round


噤若寒蟬

ㄐㄧㄣˋ ㄖㄨㄛˋ ㄏㄢˊ ㄔㄢˊ

цзиньжоханьчань

/t͡ɕin⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʐu̯ɔ⁵¹ xän³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰän³⁵/

/kɐm³³ jœːk̚² hɔːn²¹ siːm²¹/

/t͡ɕin⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʐu̯ɔ⁵¹ xän³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰän³⁵/

/kɐm³³ jœːk̚² hɔːn²¹ siːm²¹/

Cicadas sing in summer and autumn than die soon. The ancients did not realize this and thought cicadas could not make a sound when it was cold, so they use it to describe not dare to speak out. From the Book of the Later Han

As a scholar-official, Liu Sheng was treated like a distinguished guest, but he couldn't recommend virtuous person, refused to refute evil words, pretended to be deaf and mute, cherished his reputation, and kept silent, he's a sinner.

The Book of the Later Han, circa 5ᵗʰ century CE

Liú Shèng wèi wèi dàfū, jiàn lǐ shàngbīn, ér zhī shàn bù jiàn, wén è wúyán, yǐnqíng xī jǐ, zì tóng hánchán, cǐ zuìrén yě.

劉勝位為大夫，見禮上賓，而知善不薦，聞惡無言，隱情惜己，自同寒蟬，此罪人也。

刘胜位为大夫，见礼上宾，而知善不荐，闻恶无言，隐情惜己，自同寒蝉，此罪人也。

Ever since he was scolded by his boss, he had become silent and never dared to express his opinions again.

Zìcóng bèi shàngsī shǔluò zhī hòu, tā biàn jìnruòhánchán, zài yě bùgǎn fābiǎo yìjiàn le.

自從被上司數落之後，他便噤若寒蟬，再也不敢發表意見了。

自从被上司数落之后，他便噤若寒蝉，再也不敢发表意见了。

to remain silent out of fear; to refrain unwillingly from speaking out


一潭死水

ㄧ ㄊㄢˊ ㄙˇ ㄕㄨㄟˇ

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ tʰän³⁵ sz̩²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʂu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jɐt̚⁵ tʰaːm²¹ sei̯³⁵ sɵy̯³⁵/

/jɐt̚⁵ tʰaːm²¹ sei̯³⁵ sɵy̯³⁵/


死氣沉沉

ㄙˇ ㄑㄧˋ ㄔㄣˊ ㄔㄣˊ

сыцичэньчэнь

sycičɛnʹčɛnʹ

/sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰən³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰən³⁵/

/sei̯³⁵ hei̯³³ t͡sʰɐm²¹ t͡sʰɐm²¹/

/sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰən³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰən³⁵/

/sei̯³⁵ hei̯³³ t͡sʰɐm²¹ t͡sʰɐm²¹/

lifeless; spiritless; lacking vitality or vigour


揭竿而起

ㄐㄧㄝ ㄍㄢ ㄦˊ ㄑㄧˇ

/t͡ɕi̯ɛ⁵⁵ kän⁵⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ t͡ɕʰi²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/kʰiːt̚³ kɔːn⁵⁵ jiː²¹ hei̯³⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛ⁵⁵ kän⁵⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ t͡ɕʰi²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/kʰiːt̚³ kɔːn⁵⁵ jiː²¹ hei̯³⁵/


/t͡sou̯²² mɐt̚⁵ kɐu̯⁵⁵/

/t͡sou̯²² mɐt̚⁵ kɐu̯⁵⁵/

Initialism of the irregular romanisation of 做乜 (zou⁶ mat¹) + 9 (gau¹).

(Hong Kong Cantonese, Internet slang, leetspeak) Alternative form of 做乜鳩／做乜鸠 (zou⁶ mat¹ gau¹, “what the fuck is [one] doing”)


藍皮綠骨

ㄌㄢˊ ㄆㄧˊ ㄌㄩˋ ㄍㄨˇ

/län³⁵ pʰi³⁵ ly⁵¹ ku²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/laːm²¹ pʰei̯²¹ lʊk̚² kʷɐt̚⁵/

/län³⁵ pʰi³⁵ ly⁵¹ ku²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/laːm²¹ pʰei̯²¹ lʊk̚² kʷɐt̚⁵/

藍皮綠骨／蓝皮绿骨 (lánpílǜgǔ, “to have blue skin but green bones”) figuratively means "to appear blue (as a Kuomintang member) but in truth be pro-green deep down".

(Taiwan, politics, derogatory) to be a Kuomintang member but pro-green or pro-Taiwanese independence at heart

Democratic Progressive Party
Pan-Blue Coalition


棄筆從戎

ㄑㄧˋ ㄅㄧˇ ㄘㄨㄥˊ ㄖㄨㄥˊ

/t͡ɕʰi⁵¹ pi²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sʰʊŋ³⁵ ʐʊŋ³⁵/

/hei̯³³ pɐt̚⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ jʊŋ²¹/

/t͡ɕʰi⁵¹ pi²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sʰʊŋ³⁵ ʐʊŋ³⁵/

/hei̯³³ pɐt̚⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ jʊŋ²¹/

投筆從戎 投筆從戎#Chinese

投笔从戎 投笔从戎#Chinese


春秋大夢

ㄔㄨㄣ ㄑㄧㄡ ㄉㄚˋ ㄇㄥˋ

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵ tä⁵¹⁻⁵³ mɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɵn⁵⁵ t͡sʰɐu̯⁵⁵ taːi̯²² mʊŋ²²/

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵ tä⁵¹⁻⁵³ mɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɵn⁵⁵ t͡sʰɐu̯⁵⁵ taːi̯²² mʊŋ²²/

做你的春秋大夢！

做你的春秋大梦！


私相授受

ㄙ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄕㄡˋ ㄕㄡˋ

/sz̩⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʂoʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂoʊ̯⁵¹/

/siː⁵⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵ sɐu̯²² sɐu̯²²/

/sz̩⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʂoʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂoʊ̯⁵¹/

/siː⁵⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵ sɐu̯²² sɐu̯²²/

to make underhand dealings among one another


不可告人

ㄅㄨˋ ㄎㄜˇ ㄍㄠˋ ㄖㄣˊ

/pu⁵¹ kʰɤ²¹⁴⁻²¹ kɑʊ̯⁵¹ ʐən³⁵/

/pɐt̚⁵ hɔː³⁵ kou̯³³ jɐn²¹/

/pu⁵¹ kʰɤ²¹⁴⁻²¹ kɑʊ̯⁵¹ ʐən³⁵/

/pɐt̚⁵ hɔː³⁵ kou̯³³ jɐn²¹/

(of something negative) hidden; not to be divulged


番爿錢，唐山福

番爿钱，唐山福
番畔錢，唐山福

/hueŋ³³⁻²³ põĩ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ t͡sĩ⁵⁵ tɯŋ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ sũã³³⁻²³ hok̚²/

(Teochew, historical) money earned in foreign lands will gain happiness in China


一肚火

/jɐt̚⁵ tʰou̯¹³ fɔː³⁵/

/t͡sek̚⁴⁻² tou⁵²⁻³⁵ hue⁵²⁻²¹/

/jɐt̚⁵ tʰou̯¹³ fɔː³⁵/

/t͡sek̚⁴⁻² tou⁵²⁻³⁵ hue⁵²⁻²¹/

睇到我一肚火

1883, Adele Marion Fielde, “肚”, in A Pronouncing and Defining Dictionary of the Swatow Dialect, Arranged According to Syllables and Tones, Shanghai: American Presbyterian Mission Press, page 551:

on hearing it, was filled with burning rage

聽了氣到一肚火

听了气到一肚火


先入為主

ㄒㄧㄢ ㄖㄨˋ ㄨㄟˊ ㄓㄨˇ

сяньжувэйчжу

/ɕi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʐu⁵¹ weɪ̯³⁵ ʈ͡ʂu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/siːn⁵⁵ jɐp̚² wɐi̯²¹ t͡syː³⁵/

/siɛn⁴⁴⁻³³ zip̚⁴⁻³² ui²³⁻³³ t͡su⁴¹/

/siɛn⁴⁴⁻²² lip̚⁴⁻³² ui²⁴⁻²² t͡su⁵³/

/ɕi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʐu⁵¹ weɪ̯³⁵ ʈ͡ʂu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/siːn⁵⁵ jɐp̚² wɐi̯²¹ t͡syː³⁵/

/siɛn⁴⁴⁻³³ zip̚⁴⁻³² ui²³⁻³³ t͡su⁴¹/

/siɛn⁴⁴⁻²² lip̚⁴⁻³² ui²⁴⁻²² t͡su⁵³/

to be prejudiced by a first impression; to have a preconception


作法自斃

ㄗㄨㄛˋ ㄈㄚˇ ㄗˋ ㄅㄧˋ

/t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ fä²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ pi⁵¹/

/t͡sɔːk̚³ faːt̚³ t͡siː²² pɐi̯²²/

/t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ fä²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ pi⁵¹/

/t͡sɔːk̚³ faːt̚³ t͡siː²² pɐi̯²²/

to make laws or rules that harm oneself in the end

to reap what one sows; to bear the consequences of one's own misdeeds


撩是鬥非

/liːu̯²¹ siː²² tɐu̯³³ fei̯⁵⁵/

/liːu̯²¹ siː²² tɐu̯³³ fei̯⁵⁵/

(Cantonese) to provoke a quarrel or a fight; to stir up trouble


口水多過浪花

/hɐu̯³⁵ sɵy̯³⁵ tɔː⁵⁵ kʷɔː³³ lɔːŋ²² faː⁵⁵/

口水多過茶 口水多過茶#Chinese

口水多过茶 口水多过茶#Chinese

(Cantonese) Synonym of 口水多過茶／口水多过茶 (“to be very talkative; to be garrulous”)


入情入理

ㄖㄨˋ ㄑㄧㄥˊ ㄖㄨˋ ㄌㄧˇ

/ʐu⁵¹ t͡ɕʰiŋ³⁵ ʐu⁵¹ li²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jɐp̚² t͡sʰɪŋ²¹ jɐp̚² lei̯¹³/

/ʐu⁵¹ t͡ɕʰiŋ³⁵ ʐu⁵¹ li²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jɐp̚² t͡sʰɪŋ²¹ jɐp̚² lei̯¹³/


天衣無縫

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (天衣無縫):
* → Japanese: 天衣無縫(てんいむほう) (ten'imuhō)

ㄊㄧㄢ ㄧ ㄨˊ ㄈㄥˋ

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ i⁵⁵ u³⁵ fɤŋ⁵¹/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ jiː⁵⁵ mou̯²¹ fʊŋ²¹/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ jiː⁵⁵ mou̯²¹ fʊŋ²²/

/tʰiɛn⁴⁴⁻²² i⁴⁴⁻²² bu²⁴⁻²² hɔŋ²²/

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ i⁵⁵ u³⁵ fɤŋ⁵¹/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ jiː⁵⁵ mou̯²¹ fʊŋ²¹/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ jiː⁵⁵ mou̯²¹ fʊŋ²²/

/tʰiɛn⁴⁴⁻²² i⁴⁴⁻²² bu²⁴⁻²² hɔŋ²²/


眾人代

/t͡siɪŋ⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ laŋ²⁴⁻²² tai⁴¹/

/t͡siɪŋ²¹⁻⁵³ laŋ²⁴⁻²² tai²²/

/t͡siɪŋ²¹⁻⁵³ laŋ¹³⁻²² tai²²/

/t͡siɪŋ⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ laŋ²⁴⁻²² tai⁴¹/

/t͡siɪŋ²¹⁻⁵³ laŋ²⁴⁻²² tai²²/

/t͡siɪŋ²¹⁻⁵³ laŋ¹³⁻²² tai²²/

(Southern Min) affairs of the general public


聲大夾惡

/sɛːŋ⁵⁵ taːi̯²² kaːp̚³ ɔːk̚³/

/sɛːŋ⁵⁵ taːi̯²² kaːp̚³ ɔːk̚³/

(Cantonese) loud and fierce; loud and ferocious


敝帚自珍

ㄅㄧˋ ㄓㄡˇ ㄗˋ ㄓㄣ

бичжоуцзычжэнь

/pi⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sz̩⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂən⁵⁵/

/pɐi̯²² t͡sɐu̯³⁵ t͡siː²² t͡sɐn⁵⁵/

/pi⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sz̩⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂən⁵⁵/

/pɐi̯²² t͡sɐu̯³⁵ t͡siː²² t͡sɐn⁵⁵/

(figurative) to cherish something of little value simply because it is one's own


見步行步

/kiːn³³ pou̯²² haːŋ²¹ pou̯²²/

/kiːn³³ pou̯²² haːŋ²¹ pou̯²²/

(Cantonese) to play by ear; to react to events as they occur


聞風喪膽

ㄨㄣˊ ㄈㄥ ㄙㄤˋ ㄉㄢˇ

вэньфэнсандань

/wən³⁵ fɤŋ⁵⁵ sɑŋ⁵¹ tän²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/mɐn²¹ fʊŋ⁵⁵ sɔːŋ³³ taːm³⁵/

/wən³⁵ fɤŋ⁵⁵ sɑŋ⁵¹ tän²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/mɐn²¹ fʊŋ⁵⁵ sɔːŋ³³ taːm³⁵/

to be extremely terrified of a certain person, group or thing


頭會箕斂

ㄊㄡˊ ㄏㄨㄟˋ ㄐㄧ ㄌㄧㄢˇ

ㄊㄡˊ ㄏㄨㄟˋ ㄐㄧ ㄌㄧㄢˋ

тоухуэйцзилянь

/tʰoʊ̯³⁵ xu̯eɪ̯⁵¹ t͡ɕi⁵⁵ li̯ɛn²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/tʰoʊ̯³⁵ xu̯eɪ̯⁵¹ t͡ɕi⁵⁵ li̯ɛn⁵¹/

/tʰoʊ̯³⁵ xu̯eɪ̯⁵¹ t͡ɕi⁵⁵ li̯ɛn⁵¹/

Originally used to describe oppressive taxation of the Qin dynasty

On the frontiers and in the interior there was widespread unrest, and the populace were destitute and exhausted. Still, taxation was levied by polling and goods were amassed by the basketful to make up for the expenses of war. Their wealth destroyed and labour worn out, the people simply couldn't make a living at all.

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

Wàinèi sāodòng, bǎixìng píbì, tóuhuì jīliǎn, yǐgōng jūnfèi, cáikuì lìjìn, mín bùliáo shēng.

外內騷動，百姓罷敝，頭會箕斂，以供軍費，財匱力盡，民不聊生。

外内骚动，百姓疲敝，头会箕敛，以供军费，财匮力尽，民不聊生。

to collect revenue bypolling and amass them in baskets

(literary) to plunder the populace, especially by excessive levies; to overtax; to oppress and exploit the people


自討苦吃

ㄗˋ ㄊㄠˇ ㄎㄨˇ ㄔ

/t͡sz̩⁵¹ tʰɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ kʰu²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩⁵⁵/

/t͡siː²² tʰou̯³⁵ fuː³⁵ hɛːk̚³/

/t͡siː²² tʰou̯³⁵ fuː³⁵ hɛːk̚³/

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

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


言出必行

ㄧㄢˊ ㄔㄨ ㄅㄧˋ ㄒㄧㄥˊ

/jɛn³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵⁵ pi⁵¹ ɕiŋ³⁵/

/jiːn²¹ t͡sʰɵt̚⁵ piːt̚⁵ hɐŋ²¹/

/ɡiɛn²⁴⁻²² t͡sʰut̚³²⁻⁴ pit̚³²⁻⁴ hiɪŋ²⁴/

/ɡiɛn²⁴⁻²² t͡sʰut̚⁵⁻²⁴ pit̚⁵⁻²⁴ hiɪŋ²⁴/

/ɡiɛn¹³⁻²² t͡sʰut̚³²⁻⁵ pit̚³²⁻⁵ hiɪŋ¹³/

/ɡiɛn²⁴⁻¹¹ t͡sʰut̚³²⁻⁴ pit̚³²⁻⁴ hiɪŋ²⁴/

/ɡiɛn²³⁻³³ t͡sʰut̚³²⁻⁴ pit̚³²⁻⁴ hiɪŋ²³/

/jɛn³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵⁵ pi⁵¹ ɕiŋ³⁵/

/jiːn²¹ t͡sʰɵt̚⁵ piːt̚⁵ hɐŋ²¹/

/ɡiɛn²⁴⁻²² t͡sʰut̚³²⁻⁴ pit̚³²⁻⁴ hiɪŋ²⁴/

/ɡiɛn²⁴⁻²² t͡sʰut̚⁵⁻²⁴ pit̚⁵⁻²⁴ hiɪŋ²⁴/

/ɡiɛn¹³⁻²² t͡sʰut̚³²⁻⁵ pit̚³²⁻⁵ hiɪŋ¹³/

/ɡiɛn²⁴⁻¹¹ t͡sʰut̚³²⁻⁴ pit̚³²⁻⁴ hiɪŋ²⁴/

/ɡiɛn²³⁻³³ t͡sʰut̚³²⁻⁴ pit̚³²⁻⁴ hiɪŋ²³/


見不得人

ㄐㄧㄢˋ ˙ㄅㄨ ㄉㄜˊ ㄖㄣˊ

ㄐㄧㄢˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄉㄜˊ ㄖㄣˊ

цзяньбудэжэнь

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ b̥u¹ tɤ³⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ tɤ³⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/kiːn³³ pɐt̚⁵ tɐk̚⁵ jɐn²¹/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ b̥u¹ tɤ³⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ tɤ³⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/kiːn³³ pɐt̚⁵ tɐk̚⁵ jɐn²¹/


錯有錯著

/t͡sʰɔː³³ jɐu̯¹³ t͡sʰɔː³³ t͡sœːk̚²/

/t͡sʰo⁵³ iu⁴⁴⁻³⁵ t͡sʰo⁵³ t͡sʰɔk̚⁵/

/t͡sʰɔː³³ jɐu̯¹³ t͡sʰɔː³³ t͡sœːk̚²/

/t͡sʰo⁵³ iu⁴⁴⁻³⁵ t͡sʰo⁵³ t͡sʰɔk̚⁵/

(Cantonese, Hakka) to leave a mistake uncorrected and have it turn out to be something good; a mistake turns out to be beneficial or useful


計計埋埋

/kɐi̯³³ kɐi̯³³ maːi̯²¹ maːi̯²¹/

/kɐi̯³³ kɐi̯³³ maːi̯²¹ maːi̯²¹/

actually quite a lot when you add it all together

計計埋埋都唔少

计计埋埋都唔少


述而不作

ㄕㄨˋ ㄦˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄗㄨㄛˋ

/ʂu⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹/

/sɵt̚² jiː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ t͡sɔːk̚³/

/ʂu⁵¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹/

/sɵt̚² jiː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ t͡sɔːk̚³/

From the Analects, Book 7 (《論語·述而》):
:
The identity of 老彭 was unclear. According to the Elder Dai's Book of Rites (《大戴禮記》), a wise nobleman of the Shang-era bore that appellation.

The Master said, "A transmitter and not a maker, believing in and loving the ancients, I venture to compare myself with the Venerable Peng."

Zǐyuē: “Shù ér bùzuò, xìn ér hàogǔ, qiè bǐ yú wǒ Lǎopéng.”

子曰：「述而不作，信而好古，竊比於我老彭。」

子曰：「述而不作，信而好古，窃比于我老彭。」

(literary) to refrain from unwarranted innovations; to resist the temptation to speculate


我愛汝

/ɡua⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ ai²¹⁻⁴¹ li⁴¹/

/ɡua⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ai²¹⁻⁵³ li⁵³/

/ɡua³¹⁻²⁴ ai¹¹²⁻⁴² lɯ³¹/

/ɡua⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ ai⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ lɯ⁵⁵⁴/

/ɡua⁴⁴⁵⁻³³ ai²¹⁻³³ lu⁴⁴⁵/

/ɡua⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ai²¹⁻⁵³ lu⁵³/

/ua⁴²⁻²⁴ ai²¹⁻⁴² li⁴²/

/ua⁴²⁻²⁴ ai²¹⁻⁴² lɯ⁴²/

/ua⁵²⁻³⁵ ãĩ²¹³⁻⁵⁵ lɯ⁵²⁻²¹/

/ɡua⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ ai²¹⁻⁴¹ li⁴¹/

/ɡua⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ai²¹⁻⁵³ li⁵³/

/ɡua³¹⁻²⁴ ai¹¹²⁻⁴² lɯ³¹/

/ɡua⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ ai⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ lɯ⁵⁵⁴/

/ɡua⁴⁴⁵⁻³³ ai²¹⁻³³ lu⁴⁴⁵/

/ɡua⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ai²¹⁻⁵³ lu⁵³/

/ua⁴²⁻²⁴ ai²¹⁻⁴² li⁴²/

/ua⁴²⁻²⁴ ai²¹⁻⁴² lɯ⁴²/

/ua⁵²⁻³⁵ ãĩ²¹³⁻⁵⁵ lɯ⁵²⁻²¹/

我疼汝

goá thiàⁿ lí / góa thiàⁿ lír / góa thiàⁿ lú / óa thiàⁿ lí / óa thiàⁿ lír

(Hokkien, literal) I like you; I want you

(Hokkien, Teochew) I love you (expression)


駕鶴西去

ㄐㄧㄚˋ ㄏㄜˋ ㄒㄧ ㄑㄩˋ

/t͡ɕi̯ä⁵¹⁻⁵³ xɤ⁵¹ ɕi⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰy⁵¹/

/kaː³³ hɔːk̚² sɐi̯⁵⁵ hɵy̯³³/

/t͡ɕi̯ä⁵¹⁻⁵³ xɤ⁵¹ ɕi⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰy⁵¹/

/kaː³³ hɔːk̚² sɐi̯⁵⁵ hɵy̯³³/

被難

to be killed in a disaster, political incident


駕鶴西遊

ㄐㄧㄚˋ ㄏㄜˋ ㄒㄧ ㄧㄡˊ

/t͡ɕi̯ä⁵¹⁻⁵³ xɤ⁵¹ ɕi⁵⁵ joʊ̯³⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯ä⁵¹⁻⁵³ xɤ⁵¹ ɕi⁵⁵ joʊ̯³⁵/


陳陳相因

ㄔㄣˊ ㄔㄣˊ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄧㄣ

чэньчэньсянъинь

čɛnʹčɛnʹsjanʺinʹ

/ʈ͡ʂʰən³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰən³⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ in⁵⁵/

/ʈ͡ʂʰən³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰən³⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ in⁵⁵/

Originally refers to the way old grains a stockpiled in warehouses

In the Imperial Granary, old grains are stacked upon even older ones and are in turn followed by more old grains. They overflow the storage and are exposed outside in piles, until becoming rotten and unfit for consumption.

Tàicāng zhī sù, chénchén xiàngyīn, chōngyì lùjī yú wài, zhì fǔbài bùkě shí.

太倉之粟，陳陳相因，充溢露積於外，至腐敗不可食。

太仓之粟，陈陈相因，充溢露积于外，至腐败不可食。

(figurative) to become stagnant or obsolete due to rigid adherence to tradition; to be devoid of any innovation


傲骨嶙峋

ㄠˋ ㄍㄨˇ ㄌㄧㄣˊ ㄒㄩㄣˊ

аогу линьсюнь

/ˀɑʊ̯⁵¹ ku²¹⁴⁻²¹ lin³⁵ ɕyn³⁵/

/ŋou̯²² kʷɐt̚⁵ lɵn²¹ sɵn⁵⁵/

/ˀɑʊ̯⁵¹ ku²¹⁴⁻²¹ lin³⁵ ɕyn³⁵/

/ŋou̯²² kʷɐt̚⁵ lɵn²¹ sɵn⁵⁵/

(of people) proud and indomitable; steadfast and honest


好整以暇

ㄏㄠˋ ㄓㄥˇ ㄧˇ ㄒㄧㄚˊ

/xɑʊ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ i²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi̯ä³⁵/

/xɑʊ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ i²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi̯ä³⁵/

remain calm and composed while handling pressing affairs; take things easy


畢生難忘

ㄅㄧˋ ㄕㄥ ㄋㄢˊ ㄨㄤˋ

бишэннаньван

/pi⁵¹ ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ nän³⁵ wɑŋ⁵¹/

/pɐt̚⁵ sɐŋ⁵⁵ naːn²¹ mɔːŋ²¹/

/pi⁵¹ ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ nän³⁵ wɑŋ⁵¹/

/pɐt̚⁵ sɐŋ⁵⁵ naːn²¹ mɔːŋ²¹/

difficult to forget for one's entire life


非死即傷

ㄈㄟ ㄙˇ ㄐㄧˊ ㄕㄤ

/feɪ̯⁵⁵ sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕi³⁵ ʂɑŋ⁵⁵/

/fei̯⁵⁵ sei̯³⁵ t͡sɪk̚⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵/

/feɪ̯⁵⁵ sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕi³⁵ ʂɑŋ⁵⁵/

/fei̯⁵⁵ sei̯³⁵ t͡sɪk̚⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵/

to be either dead or wounded; to be injured, if not die


管中窺豹

ㄍㄨㄢˇ ㄓㄨㄥ ㄎㄨㄟ ㄅㄠˋ

гуаньчжункуйбао

/ku̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵ kʰu̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ pɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/kuːn³⁵ t͡sʊŋ⁵⁵ kʷʰɐi̯⁵⁵ pʰaːu̯³³/

/ku̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵ kʰu̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ pɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/kuːn³⁵ t͡sʊŋ⁵⁵ kʷʰɐi̯⁵⁵ pʰaːu̯³³/

to see only part of the big picture; to have only a limited view of something


後果自負

ㄏㄡˋ ㄍㄨㄛˇ ㄗˋ ㄈㄨˋ

/xoʊ̯⁵¹ ku̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ fu⁵¹/

/hɐu̯²² kʷɔː³⁵ t͡siː²² fuː²²/

/xoʊ̯⁵¹ ku̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ fu⁵¹/

/hɐu̯²² kʷɔː³⁵ t͡siː²² fuː²²/


以小見大

ㄧˇ ㄒㄧㄠˇ ㄐㄧㄢˋ ㄉㄚˋ

/i²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ɕi̯ɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹⁻⁵³ tä⁵¹/

/jiː¹³ siːu̯³⁵ kiːn³³ taːi̯²²/

/jiː¹³ siːu̯³⁵ kiːn³³ taːi̯²²/

see the forest for the trees
see the forest for the trees

to see the forest for the trees; to discern the big picture or an overall pattern from small details


駟馬難追

ㄙˋ ㄇㄚˇ ㄋㄢˊ ㄓㄨㄟ

сымананьчжуй

/sz̩⁵¹ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ nän³⁵ ʈ͡ʂu̯eɪ̯⁵⁵/

/siː³³ maː¹³ naːn²¹ t͡sɵy̯⁵⁵/

/su¹¹⁻⁵³ mã⁵³ lan²⁴⁻¹¹ tui⁴⁴/

/su²¹⁻⁴¹ mã⁴¹ lan²³⁻³³ tui⁴⁴/

/sz̩⁵¹ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ nän³⁵ ʈ͡ʂu̯eɪ̯⁵⁵/

/siː³³ maː¹³ naːn²¹ t͡sɵy̯⁵⁵/

/su¹¹⁻⁵³ mã⁵³ lan²⁴⁻¹¹ tui⁴⁴/

/su²¹⁻⁴¹ mã⁴¹ lan²³⁻³³ tui⁴⁴/

words cannot be taken back once they are spoken


人有三急

ㄖㄣˊ ㄧㄡˇ ㄙㄢ ㄐㄧˊ

жэньюсаньцзи

/ʐən³⁵ joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ sän⁵⁵ t͡ɕi³⁵/

/jɐn²¹ jɐu̯¹³ saːm⁵⁵ kɐp̚⁵/

/ʐən³⁵ joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ sän⁵⁵ t͡ɕi³⁵/

/jɐn²¹ jɐu̯¹³ saːm⁵⁵ kɐp̚⁵/

to need to use the toilet; to need to urinate or defecate


事急馬行田

ㄕˋ ㄐㄧˊ ㄇㄚˇ ㄒㄧㄥˊ ㄊㄧㄢˊ

ши цзи ма син тянь

/ʂʐ̩⁵¹ t͡ɕi³⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕiŋ³⁵ tʰi̯ɛn³⁵/

/siː²² kɐp̚⁵ maː¹³ haːŋ²¹ tʰiːn²¹/

/ʂʐ̩⁵¹ t͡ɕi³⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕiŋ³⁵ tʰi̯ɛn³⁵/

/siː²² kɐp̚⁵ maː¹³ haːŋ²¹ tʰiːn²¹/

In xiangqi, the horse can only move like the character 日 on the chessboard. A horse moving like the character 田 violates the rule.

the horse moves like the character田 (tián) in an emergency

to take extraordinary actions in an emergency


人無完人

ㄖㄣˊ ㄨˊ ㄨㄢˊ ㄖㄣˊ

жэнь у ваньжэнь

žɛnʹ u vanʹžɛnʹ

/ʐən³⁵ u³⁵ wän³⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/jɐn²¹ mou̯²¹ jyːn²¹ jɐn²¹/

/ʐən³⁵ u³⁵ wän³⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/jɐn²¹ mou̯²¹ jyːn²¹ jɐn²¹/


雞食放光蟲——心知肚明

the chicken eats a firefly—the heart knows and the stomach is bright

/kɐi̯⁵⁵ sɪk̚² fɔːŋ³³ kʷɔːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ²¹⁻³⁵ sɐm⁵⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ tʰou̯¹³ mɪŋ²¹/

/kɐi̯⁵⁵ sɪk̚² fɔːŋ³³ kʷɔːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ²¹ sɐm⁵⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ tʰou̯¹³ mɪŋ²¹/


潮州音樂——自己顧自己

/t͡sʰiːu̯²¹ t͡sɐu̯⁵⁵ jɐm⁵⁵ ŋɔːk̚² t͡siː²² kei̯³⁵ kuː³³ t͡siː²² kei̯³⁵/

/t͡sʰiːu̯²¹ t͡sɐu̯⁵⁵ jɐm⁵⁵ ŋɔːk̚² kiː²² kiː⁵⁵ kuː³³ kiː²² kiː⁵⁵/

A pun involving the Teochew word 家己 (ga1 gi7, “oneself”), comparing the sound of the phrase ga gi gu ga gi to the sound of an erhu.

Teochew music ― one only cares about oneself

(Cantonese) to only care about oneself and not others


泥水佬開門口——過得自己過得人

head

泥水佬開門口——過得自己過得人

泥水佬开门口——过得自己过得人

a bricklayer cuts a door opening in the wall ― it has to be passable for himself and also for others

/nɐi̯²¹ sɵy̯³⁵ lou̯³⁵ hɔːi̯⁵⁵ muːn²¹ hɐu̯³⁵ kʷɔː³³ tɐk̚⁵ t͡siː²² kei̯³⁵ kʷɔː³³ tɐk̚⁵ jɐn²¹/

(Cantonese) Consider whether one's actions are acceptable to others; Be considerate of others and do not act unreasonably


泥菩薩過江

a clay bodhisattva statue crosses the river (― unable to even protect oneself)

ㄋㄧˊ ㄆㄨˊ ㄙㄚˋ ㄍㄨㄛˋ ㄐㄧㄤ

нипусагоцзян

/ni³⁵ pʰu³⁵ sä⁵¹⁻⁵³ ku̯ɔ⁵¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵/

/nɐi̯²¹ pʰou̯²¹ saːt̚³ kʷɔː³³ kɔːŋ⁵⁵/

/ni³⁵ pʰu³⁵ sä⁵¹⁻⁵³ ku̯ɔ⁵¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵/

/nɐi̯²¹ pʰou̯²¹ saːt̚³ kʷɔː³³ kɔːŋ⁵⁵/

泥菩薩過江——自身難保 泥菩薩過江——自身難保#Chinese

泥菩萨过江——自身难保 泥菩萨过江——自身难保#Chinese

Short for 泥菩薩過江——自身難保／泥菩萨过江——自身难保 (nípúsàguòjiāng, zìshēnnánbǎo, “to be in trouble oneself and thus unable to help others”).


泥菩薩過江——自身難保

泥菩萨过江——自身难保
泥菩薩過江，自身難保

a clay bodhisattva statue crosses the river ― unable to even protect oneself

ㄋㄧˊ ㄆㄨˊ ㄙㄚˋ ㄍㄨㄛˋ ㄐㄧㄤ

ㄗˋ ㄕㄣ ㄋㄢˊ ㄅㄠˇ

нипусагоцзян

цзышэньнаньбао

/ni³⁵ pʰu³⁵ sä⁵¹⁻⁵³ ku̯ɔ⁵¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹ ʂən⁵⁵ nän³⁵ pɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/nɐi̯²¹ pʰou̯²¹ saːt̚³ kʷɔː³³ kɔːŋ⁵⁵ t͡siː²² sɐn⁵⁵ naːn²¹ pou̯³⁵/

to be in trouble oneself and thus unable to help others


司馬昭之心——路人皆知

ㄙ ㄇㄚˇ ㄓㄠ ㄓ ㄒㄧㄣ

ㄌㄨˋ ㄖㄣˊ ㄐㄧㄝ ㄓ

Сыма Чжао чжи синь

лужэнь цзе чжи

/sz̩⁵⁵ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ɕin⁵⁵ lu⁵¹ ʐən³⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/siː⁵⁵ maː¹³ t͡sʰiːu̯⁵⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ sɐm⁵⁵ lou̯²² jɐn²¹ kaːi̯⁵⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵/

From Cao Mao (Emperor of Cao Wei)'s statement of ousting Sima Zhao, before Cao was assassinated by Sima. This quote was later quoted by the historian Pei Songzhi in his annotated version of the Records of the Three Kingdoms

In Year 3 of Jingyao (Year 1 of Jingyuan of Wei, 260 AD), Sima Zhao assassinated the emperor Cao Mao and Wang Jing. (Before this,) Since the death of Cao Fang, the State of Wei has abolished the royal guards. There was no longer strong defense and only old and weak soldiers were left. Cao Mao felt that his authority was fading away and felt angry. Then he called Wang Chen, Wang Jing and Wang Ye, and told them, “Even people passing by know the ambition of Sima Zhao. I can't bear the humiliation of being dethroned. I think it's time to fight against him now.”

景耀三年（魏景元元年），昭殺其主髦及王經。自曹芳事後，魏人省徹宿衛，無復鎧甲，諸門戎兵老弱而已。曹髦見威權日去，不勝其忿。乃召侍中王沈、尚書王經、常侍王業，謂曰：「司馬昭之心，路人所知也。[[#Chinese|]]

司马昭之心——路人皆知
司馬昭之心，路人皆知

Sima Zhao's heart ― every passer-by knows

one's evil ambitions are apparent to everyone

Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms


豬八戒照鏡子——裡外不是人

豬八戒照鏡子——裡外不是人

猪八戒照镜子——里外不是人

Zhu Bajie looks at the mirror - not a human both inside and outside

ㄓㄨ ㄅㄚ ㄐㄧㄝˋ ㄓㄠˋ ㄐㄧㄥˋ ㄗˇ

ㄌㄧˇ ㄨㄞˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄕˋ ㄖㄣˊ

lǐwàibùshìrén [Phonetic:Zhū Bājiè zhào jìngzǐ

Чжу Бацзе чжао цзинцзы

ливайбушижэнь

/ʈ͡ʂu⁵⁵ pä⁵⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕiŋ⁵¹ t͡sz̩²¹⁴⁻³⁵ li²¹⁴⁻²¹ waɪ̯⁵¹ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹ ʐən³⁵/

to be unable to make anybody happy; to please none of them


太公分豬肉——人人有份

/tʰaːi̯³³ kʊŋ⁵⁵ fɐn⁵⁵ t͡syː⁵⁵ jʊk̚² jɐn²¹ jɐn²¹ jɐu̯¹³ fɐn²²⁻³⁵/

(Cantonese) everyone receives a share (of something given out)


放虎歸山

ㄈㄤˋ ㄏㄨˇ ㄍㄨㄟ ㄕㄢ

фанхугуйшань

/fɑŋ⁵¹ xu²¹⁴⁻²¹ ku̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ ʂän⁵⁵/

/fɔːŋ³³ fuː³⁵ kʷɐi̯⁵⁵ saːn⁵⁵/

/fɑŋ⁵¹ xu²¹⁴⁻²¹ ku̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ ʂän⁵⁵/

/fɔːŋ³³ fuː³⁵ kʷɐi̯⁵⁵ saːn⁵⁵/

to set free an enemy or a bad person which leads to future disasters


神仙放屁——不同凡響

when an immortal farts ― a sound from an extraordinary being

ㄕㄣˊ ㄒㄧㄢ ㄈㄤˋ ㄆㄧˋ

ㄅㄨˋ ㄊㄨㄥˊ ㄈㄢˊ ㄒㄧㄤˇ

шэньсяньфанпи

бутунфаньсян

/ʂən³⁵ ɕi̯ɛn⁵⁵ fɑŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ pʰi⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ tʰʊŋ³⁵ fän³⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/sɐn²¹ siːn⁵⁵ fɔːŋ³³ pʰei̯³³ pɐt̚⁵ tʰʊŋ²¹ faːn²¹ hœːŋ³⁵/


啞子食苦瓜

/a³¹ t͡sz̩⁴⁴ sət̚⁵ fu³¹ kua⁴⁴/

/a³¹ t͡sz̩⁴⁴ sət̚⁵ fu³¹ kua⁴⁴/

(Hakka) to be unable to express one's discomfort; to be forced to suffer in silence


彌留之際

ㄇㄧˊ ㄌㄧㄡˊ ㄓ ㄐㄧˋ

/mi³⁵ li̯oʊ̯³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡ɕi⁵¹/

/nei̯²¹ lɐu̯²¹ t͡siː⁵⁵ t͡sɐi̯³³/

/mi³⁵ li̯oʊ̯³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡ɕi⁵¹/

/nei̯²¹ lɐu̯²¹ t͡siː⁵⁵ t͡sɐi̯³³/


啞巴吃黃連——有苦說不出

啞巴吃黃連——有苦說不出

哑巴吃黄连——有苦说不出
啞巴吃黃蓮——有苦說不出

a mute person tasting ineffably bitter herbs

ㄧㄚˇ ˙ㄅㄚ ㄔ ㄏㄨㄤˊ ㄌㄧㄢˊ

ㄧㄡˇ ㄎㄨˇ ㄕㄨㄛ ㄅㄨˋ ㄔㄨ

yǒu kǔ shuōbùchū [Phonetic:yǎbachīhuánglián

яба чи хуанлянь

/jä²¹⁴ b̥ä⁴ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩⁵⁵ xu̯ɑŋ³⁵ li̯ɛn³⁵ joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ kʰu²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂu̯ɔ⁵⁵ pu⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵⁵/

/aː³⁵ paː⁵⁵ hɛːk̚³ wɔːŋ²¹ liːn²¹ jɐu̯¹³ fuː³⁵ syːt̚³ pɐt̚⁵ t͡sʰɵt̚⁵/


一理通，百理明

ㄅㄞˇ ㄌㄧˇ ㄇㄧㄥˊ

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ li²¹⁴⁻²¹ tʰʊŋ⁵⁵ paɪ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ li²¹⁴⁻²¹ miŋ³⁵/

/jɐt̚⁵ lei̯¹³ tʰʊŋ⁵⁵ paːk̚³ lei̯¹³ mɪŋ²¹/

蔡加加 (lyricist 潘健康), 教育電視數學第二學習階段主題曲

jat¹ lei⁵ tung¹ baak³ lei⁵ ming⁴, ming⁴ baak⁶ liu⁵ gai³ syun³ ho² bin³ gaan² daan¹.

一理通百理明，明白了計算可變簡單。

蔡加加 (lyricist 潘健康), 教育電視數學第二學習階段主題曲

一理通百理明，明白了计算可变简单。

grasp this one thing and you'll grasp everything


攑頭三尺有神明

𫽥头三尺有神明
揭頭三尺有神明

There are gods three feet above your head

/kia(ʔ)¹²¹⁻²¹ tʰau¹³ sã⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sʰioʔ³² u²²⁻²¹ sin¹³⁻²² biɪŋ¹³/

/kia(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ tʰau²⁴ sã⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sʰioʔ³² u²²⁻²¹ sin²⁴⁻²² biɪŋ²⁴/

/ka(ʔ)²⁴⁻² tʰau²⁴ sã³³ t͡sʰioʔ⁵ u²² sin²⁴⁻²² biɪŋ²⁴/

/ɡia(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ tʰau²³ sã⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰiɤʔ³² u³³⁻²¹ sin²³⁻³³ biɪŋ²³/

/ɡia(ʔ)⁴⁻¹¹ tʰau²⁴ sã⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰioʔ³² u³³⁻¹¹ sin²⁴⁻¹¹ biɪŋ²⁴/

(Hokkien) The gods are watching, so don't think you can get away with anything.


窗明几淨

ㄔㄨㄤ ㄇㄧㄥˊ ㄐㄧ ㄐㄧㄥˋ

чуанминцзицзин

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ miŋ³⁵ t͡ɕi⁵⁵ t͡ɕiŋ⁵¹/

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ miŋ³⁵ t͡ɕi⁵⁵ t͡ɕiŋ⁵¹/

clean; tidy; neat; a well-organised place


耳聰目明

ㄦ ㄘㄨㄥ ㄇㄨˋ ㄇㄧㄥˊ

/ˀɤɻ⁵⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ mu⁵¹ miŋ³⁵/

/ˀɤɻ⁵⁵ t͡sʰʊŋ⁵⁵ mu⁵¹ miŋ³⁵/


朝令夕改

to change orders issued in the morning at the night (on the same day)

ㄓㄠ ㄌㄧㄥˋ ㄒㄧ ㄍㄞˇ

ㄓㄠ ㄌㄧㄥˋ ㄒㄧˋ ㄍㄞˇ

чжаолинсигай

/ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯⁵⁵ liŋ⁵¹ ɕi⁵⁵ kaɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯⁵⁵ liŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ɕi⁵¹ kaɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡siːu̯⁵⁵ lɪŋ²² t͡sɪk̚² kɔːi̯³⁵/

/ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯⁵⁵ liŋ⁵¹ ɕi⁵⁵ kaɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/ʈ͡ʂɑʊ̯⁵⁵ liŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ɕi⁵¹ kaɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡siːu̯⁵⁵ lɪŋ²² t͡sɪk̚² kɔːi̯³⁵/

The policies change frequently and erratically, which make people not know what course to take.

Zhèngcè zhāolìngxīgǎi, lìng rén wúsuǒshìcóng.

政策朝令夕改，令人無所適從。

政策朝令夕改，令人无所适从。

(of policies or orders) to change frequently and erratically


巾幗不讓鬚眉

ㄐㄧㄣ ㄍㄨㄛˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄖㄤˋ ㄒㄩ ㄇㄟˊ

цзиньгобужансюймэй

/t͡ɕin⁵⁵ ku̯ɔ³⁵ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ ʐɑŋ⁵¹ ɕy⁵⁵ meɪ̯³⁵/

/kɐn⁵⁵ kʷɔːk̚³ pɐt̚⁵ jœːŋ²² sou̯⁵⁵ mei̯²¹/

(of a woman) to not be worse than men; to not be inferior to men; to be as good as men


忘乎所以

ㄨㄤˋ ㄏㄨ ㄙㄨㄛˇ ㄧˇ

/wɑŋ⁵¹ xu⁵⁵ su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ i²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/mɔːŋ²¹ fuː²¹ sɔː³⁵ jiː¹³/

/wɑŋ⁵¹ xu⁵⁵ su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ i²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/mɔːŋ²¹ fuː²¹ sɔː³⁵ jiː¹³/

to forget oneself; to lose self-control; beside oneself (typically as a result of one's own behaviour)


所見即所得

ㄙㄨㄛˇ ㄐㄧㄢˋ ㄐㄧˊ ㄙㄨㄛˇ ㄉㄜˊ

соцзянь цзи содэ

/su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ t͡ɕi³⁵ su̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ tɤ³⁵/

Borrowed from English what you see is what you get, WYSIWYG.

what you see is what you get
what you see is what you get

(computing) what you see is what you get; WYSIWYG


自鳴得意

ㄗˋ ㄇㄧㄥˊ ㄉㄜˊ ㄧˋ

/t͡sz̩⁵¹ miŋ³⁵ tɤ³⁵ i⁵¹/

/t͡siː²² mɪŋ²¹ tɐk̚⁵ jiː³³/

/t͡sz̩⁵¹ miŋ³⁵ tɤ³⁵ i⁵¹/

/t͡siː²² mɪŋ²¹ tɐk̚⁵ jiː³³/


阿喀琉斯之踵

ㄚ ㄎㄚ ㄌㄧㄡˊ ㄙ ㄓ ㄓㄨㄥˇ

ㄚ ㄎㄚˋ ㄌㄧㄡˊ ㄙ ㄓ ㄓㄨㄥˇ

Акалюсы чжи чжун

/ˀä⁵⁵ kʰä⁵⁵ li̯oʊ̯³⁵ sz̩⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/ˀä⁵⁵ kʰä⁵¹ li̯oʊ̯³⁵ sz̩⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʊŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

Achilles heel (weakness of a strong individual, situation, etc.)


霆水螺

/tan²⁴⁻²² t͡sui⁵³⁻⁴⁴ le²⁴/

/tan²⁴⁻²² t͡sui⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ le²⁴/

/tan¹³⁻²² t͡sui⁵³⁻⁴⁴ le¹³/

/tan²⁴⁻¹¹ t͡sui⁵³⁻⁴⁴ le²⁴/

/tan²³⁻³³ t͡sui⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ le²³/

/tan²⁴⁻²² t͡sui⁵³⁻⁴⁴ le²⁴/

/tan²⁴⁻²² t͡sui⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ le²⁴/

/tan¹³⁻²² t͡sui⁵³⁻⁴⁴ le¹³/

/tan²⁴⁻¹¹ t͡sui⁵³⁻⁴⁴ le²⁴/

/tan²³⁻³³ t͡sui⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ le²³/


前呼後擁

ㄑㄧㄢˊ ㄏㄨ ㄏㄡˋ ㄩㄥˇ

/t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn³⁵ xu⁵⁵ xoʊ̯⁵¹ jʊŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰiːn²¹ fuː⁵⁵ hɐu̯²² jʊŋ³⁵/

/t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn³⁵ xu⁵⁵ xoʊ̯⁵¹ jʊŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰiːn²¹ fuː⁵⁵ hɐu̯²² jʊŋ³⁵/

describes the grand and loud scene of government officials or important personages touring, with many attendants yelling to clear the way and clustering around the officials or personages to protect them


田雞過河——各有各𨅝

田鸡过河——各有各𨅝
田雞過河——各有各撐

frogs cross the river —— each frog kicks its own legs to move forward

/tʰiːn²¹ kɐi̯⁵⁵ kʷɔː³³ hɔː²¹ kɔːk̚³ jɐu̯¹³ kɔːk̚³ jaːŋ³³/

(Cantonese) each person goes their own way, caring only about themselves and not others


牙唁目皺

/ŋa¹¹ ŋian⁵³⁻⁵⁵ mʊk̚¹ t͡siu⁵³/

/ŋa¹¹ ŋian⁵³⁻⁵⁵ mʊk̚¹ t͡siu⁵³/

(Hakka) with knitted brows and a doleful look; looking distressed


戇過隻鴨

/koŋ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ kue²¹³⁻⁵⁵ t͡siaʔ²⁻⁴ aʔ²/

/koŋ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ kue²¹³⁻⁵⁵ t͡siaʔ²⁻⁴ aʔ²/

(Teochew) extremely silly; extremely foolish


世衰道微

ㄕˋ ㄕㄨㄞ ㄉㄠˋ ㄨㄟ

ㄕˋ ㄕㄨㄞ ㄉㄠˋ ㄨㄟˊ

шишуайдаовэй

/ʂʐ̩⁵¹ ʂu̯aɪ̯⁵⁵ tɑʊ̯⁵¹ weɪ̯⁵⁵/

/ʂʐ̩⁵¹ ʂu̯aɪ̯⁵⁵ tɑʊ̯⁵¹ weɪ̯³⁵/

/sɐi̯³³ sɵy̯⁵⁵ tou̯²² mei̯²¹/

/ʂʐ̩⁵¹ ʂu̯aɪ̯⁵⁵ tɑʊ̯⁵¹ weɪ̯⁵⁵/

/ʂʐ̩⁵¹ ʂu̯aɪ̯⁵⁵ tɑʊ̯⁵¹ weɪ̯³⁵/

/sɐi̯³³ sɵy̯⁵⁵ tou̯²² mei̯²¹/

Again the world fell into decay, and principles faded away. Perverse speakings and oppressive deeds waxed rife again. There were instances of ministers who murdered their sovereigns, and of sons who murdered their fathers.

Shìshuāidàowēi, xiéshuō bàoxìng yǒu zuò, chén shì qí jūn zhě yǒu zhī, zǐ shì qí fù zhě yǒu zhī.

世衰道微，邪說暴行有作，臣弒其君者有之，子弒其父者有之。

世衰道微，邪说暴行有作，臣弑其君者有之，子弑其父者有之。

the world falls into decay and moral values deteriorate


荒腔走板

ㄏㄨㄤ ㄑㄧㄤ ㄗㄡˇ ㄅㄢˇ

хуанцянцзоубань

/xu̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ t͡soʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ pän²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/fɔːŋ⁵⁵ hɔːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sɐu̯³⁵ paːn³⁵/

/fɔːŋ⁵⁵ hɔːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sɐu̯³⁵ paːn³⁵/

go off on a tangent
fly off at a tangent


音信杳然

ㄧㄣ ㄒㄧㄣˋ ㄧㄠˇ ㄖㄢˊ

иньсиньяожань

/in⁵⁵ ɕin⁵¹ jɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʐän³⁵/

/jɐm⁵⁵ sɵn³³ miːu̯¹³ jiːn²¹/

/in⁵⁵ ɕin⁵¹ jɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʐän³⁵/

/jɐm⁵⁵ sɵn³³ miːu̯¹³ jiːn²¹/

to disappear without a trace; to become uncontactable


聽而不聞

ㄊㄧㄥ ㄦˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄨㄣˊ

тинъэрбувэнь

/tʰiŋ⁵⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ pu⁵¹ wən³⁵/

/tʰɪŋ⁵⁵ jiː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ mɐn²¹/

/tʰiŋ⁵⁵ ˀɤɻ³⁵ pu⁵¹ wən³⁵/

/tʰɪŋ⁵⁵ jiː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ mɐn²¹/

From the Great Learning (《大學》) in the Book of Rites

When the mind is not present, we look without seeing; we hear without understanding; and we eat and do not know the taste of what we eat. This is what is meant by saying that the cultivation of the person depends on the rectifying of the mind.

The Book of Rites, c. 4ᵗʰ – 2ⁿᵈ century BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

Xīn bùzài yān, shì ér bù jiàn, tīng ér bù wén, shí ér bùzhī qí wèi. Cǐ wèi xiūshēn zài zhèng qí xīn.

心不在焉，視而不見，聽而不聞，食而不知其味。此謂修身在正其心。

心不在焉，视而不见，听而不闻，食而不知其味。此谓修身在正其心。

to hear but not pay attention or care; to turn a deaf ear; to be indifferent


著龍袍唔似太子

著龙袍唔似太子
着龍袍唔似太子
著起龍袍唔似太子

/t͡sœːk̚³ lʊŋ²¹ pʰou̯²¹ m̩²¹ t͡sʰiː¹³ tʰaːi̯³³ t͡siː³⁵/

(Cantonese) to lack majesty or imposingness even after dressing up


著起龍袍唔似太子

著起龙袍唔似太子
着起龍袍唔似太子

dzoek⁸ hei² lung⁴ pou⁴ m⁴ tsi⁵ taai³ dzi²

/t͡sœːk̚³ hei̯³⁵ lʊŋ²¹ pʰou̯²¹ m̩²¹ t͡sʰiː¹³ tʰaːi̯³³ t͡siː³⁵/

著龍袍唔似太子 著龍袍唔似太子#Chinese

著龙袍唔似太子 著龙袍唔似太子#Chinese

(Cantonese) Synonym of 著龍袍唔似太子／著龙袍唔似太子 (“to lack majesty or imposingness even after dressing up”)


躲過初一，躲不過十五

ㄉㄨㄛˇ ㄍㄨㄛˋ ㄔㄨ ㄧ

ㄉㄨㄛˇ ㄅㄨˋ ㄍㄨㄛˋ ㄕˊ ㄨˇ

duǒ bù guò shíwǔ [Phonetic:duǒ guò chūyī

до бу го шиу

/tu̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ku̯ɔ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵⁵ i⁵⁵ tu̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ ku̯ɔ⁵¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵ u²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

One can avoid something for a short while but not forever


竹門對竹門，木門對木門

竹门对竹门，木门对木门
木門對木門，竹門對竹門

ㄓㄨˊ ㄇㄣˊ ㄉㄨㄟˋ ㄓㄨˊ ㄇㄣˊ

ㄇㄨˋ ㄇㄣˊ ㄉㄨㄟˋ ㄇㄨˋ ㄇㄣˊ

zuk¹ mun⁴ deoi³ zuk¹ mun⁴, muk⁶ mun⁴ deoi³ muk⁶ mun⁴

чжумэнь дуй чжумэнь

мумэнь дуй мумэнь

/ʈ͡ʂu³⁵ mən³⁵ tu̯eɪ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂu³⁵ mən³⁵ mu⁵¹ mən³⁵ tu̯eɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ mu⁵¹ mən³⁵/

jūk mùhn deui jūk mùhn, muhk mùhn deui muhk mùhn

dzuk⁷ mun⁴ doey³ dzuk⁷ mun⁴, muk⁹ mun⁴ doey³ muk⁹ mun⁴

zug¹ mun⁴ dêu³ zug¹ mun⁴, mug⁶ mun⁴ dêu³ mug⁶ mun⁴

/t͡sʊk̚⁵ muːn²¹ tɵy̯³³ t͡sʊk̚⁵ muːn²¹ mʊk̚² muːn²¹ tɵy̯³³ mʊk̚² muːn²¹/

(of the families of the male and female in a marriage) to be well-matched in terms of socio-economic status (for purposes of marriage); to have similar family backgrounds


木門對木門，竹門對竹門

ㄇㄨˋ ㄇㄣˊ ㄉㄨㄟˋ ㄇㄨˋ ㄇㄣˊ

ㄓㄨˊ ㄇㄣˊ ㄉㄨㄟˋ ㄓㄨˊ ㄇㄣˊ

muk⁶ mun⁴ deoi³ muk⁶ mun⁴, zuk¹ mun⁴ deoi³ zuk¹ mun⁴

мумэнь дуй мумэнь

чжумэнь дуй чжумэнь

/mu⁵¹ mən³⁵ tu̯eɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ mu⁵¹ mən³⁵ ʈ͡ʂu³⁵ mən³⁵ tu̯eɪ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂu³⁵ mən³⁵/

muhk mùhn deui muhk mùhn, jūk mùhn deui jūk mùhn

muk⁹ mun⁴ doey³ muk⁹ mun⁴, dzuk⁷ mun⁴ doey³ dzuk⁷ mun⁴

mug⁶ mun⁴ dêu³ mug⁶ mun⁴, zug¹ mun⁴ dêu³ zug¹ mun⁴

/mʊk̚² muːn²¹ tɵy̯³³ mʊk̚² muːn²¹ t͡sʊk̚⁵ muːn²¹ tɵy̯³³ t͡sʊk̚⁵ muːn²¹/

竹門對竹門，木門對木門 竹門對竹門，木門對木門#Chinese

竹门对竹门，木门对木门 竹门对竹门，木门对木门#Chinese

Synonym of 竹門對竹門，木門對木門／竹门对竹门，木门对木门 (zhúmén duì zhúmén, mùmén duì mùmén)


風水佬呃你十年八年

fung¹ seoi² lou² ngaak¹ nei⁵ sap⁶ nin⁴ baat³ nin⁴

fūng séui lóu ngāak néih sahp nìhn baat nìhn

fung¹ soey² lou² ngaak⁷ nei⁵ sap⁹ nin⁴ baat⁸ nin⁴

fung¹ sêu² lou² ngag¹ néi⁵ seb⁶ nin⁴ bad³ nin⁴

/fʊŋ⁵⁵ sɵy̯³⁵ lou̯³⁵ ŋaːk̚⁵ nei̯¹³ sɐp̚² niːn²¹ paːt̚³ niːn²¹/

Because it takes quite a long time for the supposed effects in fengshui to become apparent, it is said that a fengshui master can fool or scam his or her clients for many years before they realize it.

Used to express that one is telling the truth


粗口爛舌

/t͡sʰou̯⁵⁵ hɐu̯³⁵ laːn²² siːt̚²/

/t͡sʰou̯⁵⁵ hɐu̯³⁵ laːn²² siːt̚³/

/t͡sʰou̯⁵⁵ hɐu̯³⁵ laːn²² siːt̚²/

/t͡sʰou̯⁵⁵ hɐu̯³⁵ laːn²² siːt̚³/


篤眼篤鼻

/tʊk̚⁵ ŋaːn¹³ tʊk̚⁵ pei̯²²/

/tʊk̚⁵ ŋaːn¹³ tʊk̚⁵ pei̯²²/

(Cantonese) to be an eyesore; to be an annoyance; to be an irritant


一竹篙打沉一船人

jat¹ zuk¹ gou¹ daa² cam⁴ jat¹ syun⁴ jan⁴

jat⁷ dzuk⁷ gou¹ daa² tsam⁴ jat⁷ syn⁴ jan⁴

/jɐt̚⁵ t͡sʊk̚⁵ kou̯⁵⁵ taː³⁵ t͡sʰɐm²¹ jɐt̚⁵ syːn²¹ jɐn²¹/

一竹篙打一船人 一竹篙打一船人#Chinese

tar everyone with the same brush
tar with the same brush

(Cantonese) Synonym of 一竹篙打一船人 (“to tar everyone with the same brush”)


一竹篙打死一船人

jat¹ zuk¹ gou¹ daa² sei² jat¹ syun⁴ jan⁴

jat⁷ dzuk⁷ gou¹ daa² sei² jat⁷ syn⁴ jan⁴

/jɐt̚⁵ t͡sʊk̚⁵ kou̯⁵⁵ taː³⁵ sei̯³⁵ jɐt̚⁵ syːn²¹ jɐn²¹/

一竹篙打一船人 一竹篙打一船人#Chinese


一竹篙打一船人

一竹篙打死一船人
一竹篙打沉一船人
一竹篙揇沉一船人

/jɐt̚⁵ t͡sʊk̚⁵ kou̯⁵⁵ taː³⁵ jɐt̚⁵ syːn²¹ jɐn²¹/

/it̚² t͡suk̚² ko²⁴ ta³¹ it̚² son¹¹ ŋin¹¹/

/(j)it̚² t͡suk̚² ko²⁴ ta³¹ (j)it̚² son¹¹ ŋin¹¹/

(Cantonese, Hakka) to tar everyone with the same brush


水過鴨背

ㄕㄨㄟˇ ㄍㄨㄛˋ ㄧㄚ ㄅㄟˋ

/ʂu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ku̯ɔ⁵¹ jä⁵⁵ peɪ̯⁵¹/

/sɵy̯³⁵ kʷɔː³³ aːp̚³ puːi̯³³/

/ʂu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ku̯ɔ⁵¹ jä⁵⁵ peɪ̯⁵¹/

/sɵy̯³⁵ kʷɔː³³ aːp̚³ puːi̯³³/

like water off a duck's back
like water off a duck's back


王不見王

ㄨㄤˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄐㄧㄢˋ ㄨㄤˊ

ванбуцзяньван

/wɑŋ³⁵ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ wɑŋ³⁵/

/wɔːŋ²¹ pɐt̚⁵ kiːn³³ wɔːŋ²¹/

/wɑŋ³⁵ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ wɑŋ³⁵/

/wɔːŋ²¹ pɐt̚⁵ kiːn³³ wɔːŋ²¹/

(xiangqi) the rule that the two kings (generals) must never be on the same file without any pieces in between them


一丈差九尺

ㄧ ㄓㄤˋ ㄔㄚ ㄐㄧㄡˇ ㄔˇ

ичжанчацзючи

/i⁵⁵⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɑŋ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵ t͡ɕi̯oʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sit̚⁴⁻³² tŋ̍²²⁻²¹ t͡sʰa⁴⁴⁻²² kau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡sʰioʔ³²/

/t͡sit̚²⁴⁻² tŋ̍⁴¹⁻²² t͡sʰa³³ kau⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ t͡sʰioʔ⁵/

/t͡sit̚¹²¹⁻²¹ tŋ̍²²⁻²¹ t͡sʰa⁴⁴⁻²² kau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡sʰioʔ³²/

/t͡sit̚⁴⁻³² tŋ̍³³⁻¹¹ t͡sʰa⁴⁴⁻³³ kau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡sʰioʔ³²/

/t͡sit̚⁴⁻³² tŋ̍³³⁻²¹ t͡sʰa⁴⁴⁻³³ kau⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ t͡sʰiɤʔ³²/


一百歲唔死都有新聞聽

jat¹ baak³ seoi³ m⁴ sei² dou¹ jau⁵ san¹ man⁴⁻² teng¹

yāt baak seui m̀h séi dōu yáuh sān mán tēng

jat⁷ baak⁸ soey³ m⁴ sei² dou¹ jau⁵ san¹ man⁴⁻² teng¹

yed¹ bag³ sêu³ m⁴ séi² dou¹ yeo⁵ sen¹ men⁴⁻² téng¹

/jɐt̚⁵ paːk̚³ sɵy̯³³ m̩²¹ sei̯³⁵ tou̯⁵⁵ jɐu̯¹³ sɐn⁵⁵ mɐn²¹⁻³⁵ tʰɛːŋ⁵⁵/

一百歲唔死都有新聞 一百歲唔死都有新聞#Chinese

一百岁唔死都有新闻 一百岁唔死都有新闻#Chinese

(Cantonese) Synonym of 一百歲唔死都有新聞／一百岁唔死都有新闻

Synonym of 一百歲唔死都有新聞／一百岁唔死都有新闻


一百歲唔死都有新聞

[Even when you] live to a hundred years old, there are still news [to you].

jat⁷ baak⁸ soey³ m⁴ sei² dou¹ jau⁵ san¹ man⁴⁻²

yed¹ bag³ sêu³ m⁴ séi² dou¹ yeo⁵ sen¹ men⁴⁻²

/jɐt̚⁵ paːk̚³ sɵy̯³³ m̩²¹ sei̯³⁵ tou̯⁵⁵ jɐu̯¹³ sɐn⁵⁵ mɐn²¹⁻³⁵/

Oil prices fell into negative territory — it's really strange and unusual.

jau⁴ gaa³ dit³ dou³ fu⁶ sou³, zan¹ hai⁶ jat¹ baak³ seoi³ m⁴ sei² dou¹ jau⁵ san¹ man⁴⁻².

油價跌到負數，真係一百歲唔死都有新聞。

油价跌到负数，真系一百岁唔死都有新闻。

(Cantonese) used to express something is strange and unusual


缺衣少食

ㄑㄩㄝ ㄧ ㄕㄠˇ ㄕˊ

/t͡ɕʰy̯ɛ⁵⁵ i⁵⁵ ʂɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵/

/kʰyːt̚³ jiː⁵⁵ siːu̯³⁵ sɪk̚²/

/t͡ɕʰy̯ɛ⁵⁵ i⁵⁵ ʂɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵/

/kʰyːt̚³ jiː⁵⁵ siːu̯³⁵ sɪk̚²/

to have insufficient food and clothing due to poverty


以影補來

ㄧˇ ㄧㄥˇ ㄅㄨˇ ㄌㄞˊ

/i²¹⁴⁻³⁵ iŋ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ pu²¹⁴⁻²¹ laɪ̯³⁵/

/jiː¹³ jɪŋ³⁵ pou̯³⁵ lɔːi̯²¹/

/i²¹⁴⁻³⁵ iŋ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ pu²¹⁴⁻²¹ laɪ̯³⁵/

/jiː¹³ jɪŋ³⁵ pou̯³⁵ lɔːi̯²¹/

(phonology) The phenomenon in Middle Korean (in the book Dongguk Jeongun) where the hangul consonant cluster ㅭ (lq) /*-lʔ/ was used to represent the Middle Chinese final consonant /*-t/, alongside ㅂ (p) /*-p/ (MC: /*-p/) and ㄱ (k) /*-k/ (MC: /*-k/).


好話唔好聽

/hou̯³⁵ waː²² m̩²¹ hou̯³⁵ tʰɛːŋ⁵⁵/

/hou̯³⁵ waː²² m̩²¹ hou̯³⁵ tʰɛːŋ⁵⁵/

(Cantonese) to be frank; honestly speaking


一家大細

/jɐt̚⁵ kaː⁵⁵ taːi̯²² sɐi̯³³/

/jɐt̚⁵ kaː⁵⁵ taːi̯²² sɐi̯³³/


相似相溶

ㄒㄧㄤ ㄙˋ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄖㄨㄥˊ

/ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ sz̩⁵¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʐʊŋ³⁵/

/ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ sz̩⁵¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʐʊŋ³⁵/


有爺生，冇乸教

/jɐu̯¹³ jɛː²¹ saːŋ⁵⁵ mou̯¹³ naː³⁵ kaːu̯³³/

(Cantonese, chiefly of children) to be ill-bred; to have no manners or behave poorly


兔死狗烹

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (兔死狗烹):
* → Korean: 토사구팽(兎死狗烹) (tosagupaeng)

ja-r

こうとし して そうく にらる

→ Japanese: 狡兎死(こうとし)して走狗烹(そうくに)らる (kōtoshi shite sōku niraru) (calque)

ㄊㄨˋ ㄙˇ ㄍㄡˇ ㄆㄥ

/tʰu⁵¹ sz̩²¹⁴⁻³⁵ koʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ pʰɤŋ⁵⁵/

/tʰou̯³³ sei̯³⁵ kɐu̯³⁵ pʰaːŋ⁵⁵/

/tʰu⁵¹ sz̩²¹⁴⁻³⁵ koʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ pʰɤŋ⁵⁵/

/tʰou̯³³ sei̯³⁵ kɐu̯³⁵ pʰaːŋ⁵⁵/

From the Records of the Grand Historian, c. 91 BCE, quoting the fifth-century BCE strategist Fan Li

When the flying birds are done with, the good bow is stored away; when the sly rabbit dies, the hunting dog is boiled [to eat].

Fěi niǎo jìn, liáng gōng cáng; jiǎo tù sǐ, zǒugǒu pēng.

蜚鳥盡，良弓藏；狡兔死，走狗烹。

蜚鸟尽，良弓藏；狡兔死，走狗烹。

to boil the dog once it caught the rabbit

to get rid of somebody once they have served their purpose


不失一般性

ㄅㄨˋ ㄕ ㄧ ㄅㄢ ㄒㄧㄥˋ

bùshī yībānxìng [Phonetic:bùshī yìbānxìng]

буши ибаньсин

/pu⁵¹ ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ pän⁵⁵ ɕiŋ⁵¹/

/pu⁵¹ ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ pän⁵⁵ ɕiŋ⁵¹/

without loss of generality
without loss of generality

(mathematics) without loss of generality; wlog


儉腸凹肚

/kʰiam²²⁻²¹ tŋ̍²⁴⁻²² le(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ tɔ²²/

/kʰiam²² tŋ̍²⁴⁻²² liak̚⁵⁻²⁴ tɔ²²/

/kʰiam²²⁻²¹ tŋ̍¹³ nɛ̃(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ tɔ²²/

/kʰiam³³⁻¹¹ tŋ̍²⁴ nẽ(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ tɔ³³/

/kʰiam³³⁻²¹ tŋ̍²³ nẽ(ʔ)³²⁻⁴¹ tɔ³³/

/kʰiam²²⁻²¹ tŋ̍²⁴⁻²² le(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ tɔ²²/

/kʰiam²² tŋ̍²⁴⁻²² liak̚⁵⁻²⁴ tɔ²²/

/kʰiam²²⁻²¹ tŋ̍¹³ nɛ̃(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ tɔ²²/

/kʰiam³³⁻¹¹ tŋ̍²⁴ nẽ(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ tɔ³³/

/kʰiam³³⁻²¹ tŋ̍²³ nẽ(ʔ)³²⁻⁴¹ tɔ³³/

(Hokkien) to be extremely frugal, such as by saving money from daily expenses


痟狗舂墓壙

/siau⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ kau⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ bɔŋ³³⁻²¹ kʰɔŋ²¹/

/siau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ kau⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ bɔŋ³³⁻¹¹ kʰɔŋ¹¹/

(Southern Min, figurative) to vie to be first and fear to be last


無巧不成書

ㄨˊ ㄑㄧㄠˇ ㄅㄨˋ ㄔㄥˊ ㄕㄨ

/u³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰɤŋ³⁵ ʂu⁵⁵/

/mou̯²¹ kʰiːu̯³⁵ pɐt̚⁵ sɪŋ²¹ syː⁵⁵/

/mou̯²¹ kʰiːu̯³⁵ pɐt̚⁵ sɪŋ²¹ syː⁵⁵/

to be very coincidental; to be very fortuitous


心狂火著

心狂火着
心狂火着
心狂火𤏸

/sim⁴⁴ kɔŋ²⁴ he⁵³ toʔ⁴/

/sim³³ kɔŋ²⁴⁻²² hə⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ toʔ²⁴/

/sim⁴⁴⁻²² kɔŋ¹³⁻²² hue⁵³ toʔ¹²¹/

/sim⁴⁴ kɔŋ²³ hue⁴¹ tɤʔ⁴/

/sim⁴⁴ kɔŋ²⁴ he⁵³ toʔ⁴/

/sim³³ kɔŋ²⁴⁻²² hə⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ toʔ²⁴/

/sim⁴⁴⁻²² kɔŋ¹³⁻²² hue⁵³ toʔ¹²¹/

/sim⁴⁴ kɔŋ²³ hue⁴¹ tɤʔ⁴/

(Hokkien) to fly into a rage; to flare up; to lose one's temper


三綱五常

ㄙㄢ ㄍㄤ ㄨˇ ㄔㄤˊ

саньганъучан

/sän⁵⁵ kɑŋ⁵⁵ u²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ³⁵/

/saːm⁵⁵ kɔːŋ⁵⁵ ŋ̍¹³ sœːŋ²¹/

/sän⁵⁵ kɑŋ⁵⁵ u²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ³⁵/

/saːm⁵⁵ kɔːŋ⁵⁵ ŋ̍¹³ sœːŋ²¹/

(Confucianism) the three essential relationships (between ruler and subject, father and son, and husband and wife) and five constant virtues (justice, politeness, wisdom, fidelity and benevolence)


藝不壓身

ㄧˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄧㄚ ㄕㄣ

/i⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ jä⁵⁵ ʂən⁵⁵/

/ŋɐi̯²² pɐt̚⁵ aːt̚³ sɐn⁵⁵/

/i⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ jä⁵⁵ ʂən⁵⁵/

/ŋɐi̯²² pɐt̚⁵ aːt̚³ sɐn⁵⁵/

Skills and arts are not a burden to a person; Learn more skills and arts


一手一腳

ㄧ ㄕㄡˇ ㄧ ㄐㄧㄠˇ

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ ʂoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jɐt̚⁵ sɐu̯³⁵ jɐt̚⁵ kœːk̚³/

/jɐt̚⁵ sɐu̯³⁵ jɐt̚⁵ kœːk̚³/


何不食肉糜

ㄏㄜˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄕˊ ㄖㄡˋ ㄇㄧˊ

хэбу ши жоуми

/xɤ³⁵ pu⁵¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵ ʐoʊ̯⁵¹ mi³⁵/

/hɔː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ sɪk̚² jʊk̚² mei̯²¹/

/xɤ³⁵ pu⁵¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵ ʐoʊ̯⁵¹ mi³⁵/

/hɔː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ sɪk̚² jʊk̚² mei̯²¹/

A quote by Emperor Hui (259–307) of Western Jin, recorded in 《晉書》.

(sarcastic) Describing an impractical, ridiculous and often arrogant advise from someone uninvolved: If they have no bread to eat, let them eat cake.


即插即用

ㄐㄧˊ ㄔㄚ ㄐㄧˊ ㄩㄥˋ

/t͡ɕi³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵ t͡ɕi³⁵ jʊŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sɪk̚⁵ t͡sʰaːp̚³ t͡sɪk̚⁵ jʊŋ²²/

/t͡ɕi³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵ t͡ɕi³⁵ jʊŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sɪk̚⁵ t͡sʰaːp̚³ t͡sɪk̚⁵ jʊŋ²²/


雞屎落塗，也有三寸煙

/ke⁴⁴⁻³³ sai⁵³⁻⁴⁴ lo(ʔ)⁴⁻¹¹ tʰɔ²⁴ ia³³⁻¹¹ u³³⁻¹¹ sã⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰun¹¹⁻⁵³ iɛn⁴⁴/

/ke⁴⁴⁻³³ sai⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ lɤ(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ tʰɔ²³ ia³³⁻²¹ u³³⁻²¹ sã⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰun²¹⁻⁴¹ iɛn⁴⁴/

(Taiwanese Hokkien, figurative) all people must have aspirations


歪喙雞食好米

crooked beaked chicken eats the good rice

/uai⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰui²¹⁻⁴¹ ke⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ hɤ⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ bi⁴¹/

/uai⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰui¹¹⁻⁵³ ke⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻¹¹ ho⁵³⁻⁴⁴ bi⁵³/

(Taiwanese Hokkien, figurative) wanting more than one could reasonably expect given one's status or ability


袂博假博

/be³³⁻²¹ pʰɔk̚³²⁻⁴ ke⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ pʰɔk̚³²/

/be³³⁻¹¹ pʰɔk̚³²⁻⁴ ke⁵³⁻⁴⁴ pʰɔk̚³²/

/be³³⁻²¹ pʰɔk̚³²⁻⁴ ke⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ pʰɔk̚³²/

/be³³⁻¹¹ pʰɔk̚³²⁻⁴ ke⁵³⁻⁴⁴ pʰɔk̚³²/


蒙古王打仔——大汗𢱕細汗

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蒙古王打仔——大汗𢱕細汗

蒙古王打仔——大汗𢱕细汗

The Mongolian monarch hits his son—the big khan beats up the small khan (big sweat drips on small sweat)

/mʊŋ²¹ kuː³⁵ wɔːŋ²¹ taː³⁵ t͡sɐi̯³⁵ taːi̯²² hɔːn²² tɐp̚² sɐi̯³³ hɔːn²²/


化外之地

ㄏㄨㄚˋ ㄨㄞˋ ㄓ ㄉㄧˋ

/xu̯ä⁵¹⁻⁵³ waɪ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ti⁵¹/

/faː³³ ŋɔːi̯²² t͡siː⁵⁵ tei̯²²/

/xu̯ä⁵¹⁻⁵³ waɪ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ti⁵¹/

/faː³³ ŋɔːi̯²² t͡siː⁵⁵ tei̯²²/

(historical) place inhabited by uncivilized people; place inhabited by non-Han ethnic groups that is less influenced by Han Chinese culture or not ruled or controlled by the Chinese government


投機取巧

ㄊㄡˊ ㄐㄧ ㄑㄩˇ ㄑㄧㄠˇ

тоуцзицюйцяо

/tʰoʊ̯³⁵ t͡ɕi⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰy²¹⁴⁻³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/tʰɐu̯²¹ kei̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰɵy̯³⁵ haːu̯³⁵/

/tʰɐu̯²¹ kei̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰɵy̯³⁵ haːu̯³⁵/


數以萬計

ㄕㄨˋ ㄧˇ ㄨㄢˋ ㄐㄧˋ

/ʂu⁵¹ i²¹⁴⁻²¹ wän⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi⁵¹/

/sou̯³³ jiː¹³ maːn²² kɐi̯³³/

/ʂu⁵¹ i²¹⁴⁻²¹ wän⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi⁵¹/

/sou̯³³ jiː¹³ maːn²² kɐi̯³³/

numbered by the ten thousands; a large number


畏難苟安

ㄨㄟˋ ㄋㄢˊ ㄍㄡˇ ㄢ

вэйнаньгоу’ань

/weɪ̯⁵¹ nän³⁵ koʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ˀän⁵⁵/

/weɪ̯⁵¹ nän³⁵ koʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ˀän⁵⁵/

to fear danger and seek safety by unprincipled behavior


忍俊不禁

ㄖㄣˇ ㄐㄩㄣˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄐㄧㄣ

жэньцзюньбуцзинь

/ʐən²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕyn⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ t͡ɕin⁵⁵/

/jɐn³⁵ t͡sɵn³³ pɐt̚⁵ kʰɐm⁵⁵/

/ʐən²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕyn⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ t͡ɕin⁵⁵/

/jɐn³⁵ t͡sɵn³³ pɐt̚⁵ kʰɐm⁵⁵/


瞬息萬變

ㄕㄨㄣˋ ㄒㄧ ㄨㄢˋ ㄅㄧㄢˋ

ㄕㄨㄣˋ ㄒㄧˊ ㄨㄢˋ ㄅㄧㄢˋ

шуньсиваньбянь

/ʂu̯ən⁵¹ ɕi⁵⁵ wän⁵¹⁻⁵³ pi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/ʂu̯ən⁵¹ ɕi³⁵ wän⁵¹⁻⁵³ pi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/sɵn³³ sɪk̚⁵ maːn²² piːn³³/

/ʂu̯ən⁵¹ ɕi⁵⁵ wän⁵¹⁻⁵³ pi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/ʂu̯ən⁵¹ ɕi³⁵ wän⁵¹⁻⁵³ pi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/sɵn³³ sɪk̚⁵ maːn²² piːn³³/

myriad changes occur in an instant; rapid substantial change


財大氣粗

ㄘㄞˊ ㄉㄚˋ ㄑㄧˋ ㄘㄨ

/t͡sʰaɪ̯³⁵ tä⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹ t͡sʰu⁵⁵/

/t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹ taːi̯²² hei̯³³ t͡sʰou̯⁵⁵/

/t͡sʰaɪ̯³⁵ tä⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕʰi⁵¹ t͡sʰu⁵⁵/

/t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹ taːi̯²² hei̯³³ t͡sʰou̯⁵⁵/

to be rich and act in a rude and overbearing manner


肏你媽屄

肏你妈屄
操你媽屄
肏你媽逼
操你媽逼
一把米諾

ㄘㄠˋ ㄋㄧˇ ㄇㄚ ㄅㄧ

/t͡sʰɑʊ̯⁵¹ ni²¹⁴⁻²¹ mä⁵⁵ pi⁵⁵/

/t͡sʰɑʊ̯⁵¹ ni²¹⁴⁻²¹ mä⁵⁵ pi⁵⁵/

(vulgar, slang) fuck your mother; fuck you


三日打魚，兩日曬網

tofish for three days and dry the net for two

ㄙㄢ ㄖˋ ㄉㄚˇ ㄩˊ

ㄌㄧㄤˇ ㄖˋ ㄕㄞˋ ㄨㄤˇ

san¹ jih⁴ ta³ yü², liang³ jih⁴ shai⁴ wang³

сань жи да юй

лян жи шай ван

/sän⁵⁵ ʐ̩⁵¹ tä²¹⁴⁻²¹ y³⁵ li̯ɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʐ̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂaɪ̯⁵¹ wɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

三天打魚，兩天曬網 三天打魚，兩天曬網#Chinese

三天打鱼，两天晒网 三天打鱼，两天晒网#Chinese

Synonym of 三天打魚，兩天曬網／三天打鱼，两天晒网 (sān tiān dǎ yú, liǎng tiān shài wǎng, “to fail to persevere in something; to be unwilling or too lazy to concentrate”)


獨當一面

ㄉㄨˊ ㄉㄤ ㄧ ㄇㄧㄢˋ

/tu³⁵ tɑŋ⁵⁵ i⁵⁵⁻³⁵ mi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/tʊk̚² tɔːŋ⁵⁵ jɐt̚⁵ miːn²²/

/tu³⁵ tɑŋ⁵⁵ i⁵⁵⁻³⁵ mi̯ɛn⁵¹/

/tʊk̚² tɔːŋ⁵⁵ jɐt̚⁵ miːn²²/

to undertake part of a task independently; to take charge of something on one's own; to assume personal responsibility


形單影隻

ㄒㄧㄥˊ ㄉㄢ ㄧㄥˇ ㄓ

синданьинчжи

/ɕiŋ³⁵ tän⁵⁵ iŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/jɪŋ²¹ taːn⁵⁵ jɪŋ³⁵ t͡sɛːk̚³/

/ɕiŋ³⁵ tän⁵⁵ iŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/jɪŋ²¹ taːn⁵⁵ jɪŋ³⁵ t͡sɛːk̚³/


字如其人

ㄗˋ ㄖㄨˊ ㄑㄧˊ ㄖㄣˊ

/t͡sz̩⁵¹ ʐu³⁵ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/t͡siː²² jyː²¹ kʰei̯²¹ jɐn²¹/

/t͡sz̩⁵¹ ʐu³⁵ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ ʐən³⁵/

/t͡siː²² jyː²¹ kʰei̯²¹ jɐn²¹/

one's handwriting reflects one's personality


捫心自問

ㄇㄣˊ ㄒㄧㄣ ㄗˋ ㄨㄣˋ

мэньсиньцзывэнь

/mən³⁵ ɕin⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ wən⁵¹/

/muːn²¹ sɐm⁵⁵ t͡siː²² mɐn²²/

/mən³⁵ ɕin⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ wən⁵¹/

/muːn²¹ sɐm⁵⁵ t͡siː²² mɐn²²/

to reflect on oneself; to ask oneself honestly


涸轍之鮒

ㄏㄜˊ ㄓㄜˊ ㄓ ㄈㄨˋ

ㄏㄜˊ ㄔㄜˋ ㄓ ㄈㄨˋ

/xɤ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ fu⁵¹/

/xɤ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ fu⁵¹/

/kʰɔːk̚³ t͡sʰiːt̚³ t͡siː⁵⁵ fuː²²/

/xɤ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ fu⁵¹/

/xɤ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ fu⁵¹/

/kʰɔːk̚³ t͡sʰiːt̚³ t͡siː⁵⁵ fuː²²/

(figurative) a person in a desperate situation; a person in a tight spot


告老還鄉

ㄍㄠˋ ㄌㄠˇ ㄏㄨㄢˊ ㄒㄧㄤ

гаолаохуаньсян

/kɑʊ̯⁵¹ lɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu̯än³⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵/

/kou̯³³ lou̯¹³ waːn²¹ hœːŋ⁵⁵/

/kɑʊ̯⁵¹ lɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu̯än³⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵/

/kou̯³³ lou̯¹³ waːn²¹ hœːŋ⁵⁵/

(of an official) to retire and return to one's native place


優哉游哉

ㄧㄡ ㄗㄞ ㄧㄡˊ ㄗㄞ

/joʊ̯⁵⁵ t͡saɪ̯⁵⁵ joʊ̯³⁵ t͡saɪ̯⁵⁵/

/jɐu̯⁵⁵ t͡sɔːi̯⁵⁵ jɐu̯²¹ t͡sɔːi̯⁵⁵/

/joʊ̯⁵⁵ t͡saɪ̯⁵⁵ joʊ̯³⁵ t͡saɪ̯⁵⁵/

/jɐu̯⁵⁵ t͡sɔːi̯⁵⁵ jɐu̯²¹ t͡sɔːi̯⁵⁵/

From the Classic of Poetry, poem 222 (《詩經·小雅·采菽》)

lang

(《詩經·小雅·采菽》)

(《詩經·小雅·采菽》)

To be rejoiced in are the princes, And their happiness and dignities are enlarged.
How joyous, how happy, Is their coming here!

Lè zhǐ jūnzǐ, fúlù pí zhī.
Yōuzāiyóuzāi, yì shì lì yǐ.

樂只君子，福祿膍之。
優哉游哉，亦是戾矣。

乐只君子，福禄膍之。
优哉游哉，亦是戾矣。


三六滾一滾，神仙都企唔穩

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三六滾一滾，神仙都企唔穩

三六滚一滚，神仙都企唔稳
三六滾一滾，神仙企唔穩

When dog meat is boiled, even celestial beings cannot stand steadily.

saam¹ luk⁶ gwan² jat¹ gwan², san⁴ sin¹ dou¹ kei⁵ m⁴ wan²

sāam luhk gwán yāt gwán, sàhn sīn dōu kéih m̀h wán

saam¹ luk⁹ gwan² jat⁷ gwan², san⁴ sin¹ dou¹ kei⁵ m⁴ wan²

sam¹ lug⁶ guen² yed¹ guen², sen⁴ xin¹ dou¹ kéi⁵ m⁴ wen²

/saːm⁵⁵ lʊk̚² kʷɐn³⁵ jɐt̚⁵ kʷɐn³⁵ sɐn²¹ siːn⁵⁵ tou̯⁵⁵ kʰei̯¹³ m̩²¹ wɐn³⁵/

(Cantonese) An idiom describing how fragrant cooked dog meat is


杳無人煙

ㄧㄠˇ ㄨˊ ㄖㄣˊ ㄧㄢ

/jɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ u³⁵ ʐən³⁵ jɛn⁵⁵/

/miːu̯¹³ mou̯²¹ jɐn²¹ jiːn⁵⁵/

/jɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ u³⁵ ʐən³⁵ jɛn⁵⁵/

/miːu̯¹³ mou̯²¹ jɐn²¹ jiːn⁵⁵/

Wu Cheng'en, Journey to the West, 16ᵗʰ century CE

Shīxiōng chā yí le, sì zhè yǎowúrényān zhī chù, yòu wú ge guàishòu yāoqín, pà tā zěnde?

師兄差疑了，似這杳無人煙之處，又無個怪獸妖禽，怕他怎的？

师兄差疑了，似这杳无人烟之处，又无个怪兽妖禽，怕他怎的？


鋒芒畢露

ㄈㄥ ㄇㄤˊ ㄅㄧˋ ㄌㄨˋ

/fɤŋ⁵⁵ mɑŋ³⁵ pi⁵¹⁻⁵³ lu⁵¹/

/fʊŋ⁵⁵ mɔːŋ²¹ pɐt̚⁵ lou̯²²/

/fɤŋ⁵⁵ mɑŋ³⁵ pi⁵¹⁻⁵³ lu⁵¹/

/fʊŋ⁵⁵ mɔːŋ²¹ pɐt̚⁵ lou̯²²/

to fail to show restraint and display one's talent or vigour to the fullest extent


腦囟都未生埋

脑囟都未生埋
腦筍都未生埋

/nou̯¹³ sɵn³³⁻³⁵ tou̯⁵⁵ mei̯²² saːŋ⁵⁵ maːi̯²¹/

(Cantonese, derogatory) to be immature; to be naive and childish


要之

/jɑʊ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/jɑʊ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

Only after the day of death will right and wrong at last be determined.

1st century BCE, Sima Qian, Letter to Ren An. Translated by Burton Watson.

要之，死日然後是非乃定。

要之，死日然后是非乃定。

In summary, it is all about one word – practice.

c. 13th century, various editors, A Collection of Conversations of Master Zhu (《朱子語類》)

要之，只消一箇「操」字。

要之，只消一个「操」字。

1900 July 24, 梁啟超 [Liang Qichao], chapter 26, in 和文漢讀法 [The Chinese Method of Reading Japanese], Tokyo: 秀英舍, page 17:

In short, kana attached immediately after adverbs and verbs must be useless. This must be firmly remembered.

Yàozhī, fùcí, dòngcí xià jǐnjiē fùshǔ zhī jiǎmíng, bì wèi wúyòng zhě, bùkě bù láojì.

要之，副詞、動詞下緊接附屬之假名，必為無用者，不可不牢記。

要之，副词、动词下紧接附属之假名，必为无用者，不可不牢记。

1938 September 1, 運公, 《國際反對轟炸不設防城市大會議決制裁日本》, in 《東方雜誌》, volume 35, issue 17, page 50

Yàozhī, Shànghǎi, Guǎngzhōu, Mǎdélǐ, Gàiníjiāgé, Lānuòlè, Bāsàilóngnà, Yàměilìyà gè chéng chéngmíng zúyǐ xiàngzhēng fǎxīsī zài Zhōng Xī liǎng guó jìngnèi suǒ zuò zhī zhòngdà zuìxíng, wúrén jīnhòu dìngbì yǒngzhìbùwàng.

要之，上海、廣州、馬德里、蓋尼加格、拉諾勒、巴塞龍納、亞美利亞各城城名足以象徵法西斯在中西兩國境內所作之重大罪行，吾人今後定必永誌不忘。

要之，上海、广州、马德里、盖尼加格、拉诺勒、巴塞龙纳、亚美利亚各城城名足以象征法西斯在中西两国境内所作之重大罪行，吾人今后定必永志不忘。

(literary) in summary; to summarize; in short; ultimately


經世濟民

ㄐㄧㄥ ㄕˋ ㄐㄧˋ ㄇㄧㄣˊ

цзиншицзиминь

/t͡ɕiŋ⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi⁵¹ min³⁵/

/t͡ɕiŋ⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi⁵¹ min³⁵/

to administer the state to relieve the suffering of the people


書香門第

family filled up with the aroma of books

ㄕㄨ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄇㄣˊ ㄉㄧˋ

/ʂu⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ mən³⁵ ti⁵¹/

/syː⁵⁵ hœːŋ⁵⁵ muːn²¹ tɐi̯²²/

/ʂu⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ mən³⁵ ti⁵¹/

/syː⁵⁵ hœːŋ⁵⁵ muːn²¹ tɐi̯²²/


一年到暗

/it̚¹ ŋian¹¹ tau⁵³⁻⁵⁵ am⁵³/

/it̚¹ ŋian¹¹ tau⁵³⁻⁵⁵ am⁵³/

(Hakka) throughout the year; all the year round


形同虛設

ㄒㄧㄥˊ ㄊㄨㄥˊ ㄒㄩ ㄕㄜˋ

/ɕiŋ³⁵ tʰʊŋ³⁵ ɕy⁵⁵ ʂɤ⁵¹/

/jɪŋ²¹ tʰʊŋ²¹ hɵy̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰiːt̚³/

/ɕiŋ³⁵ tʰʊŋ³⁵ ɕy⁵⁵ ʂɤ⁵¹/

/jɪŋ²¹ tʰʊŋ²¹ hɵy̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰiːt̚³/

ineffectual; futile; with the setup or appearance but without the intended utility; set up but useless


如字

/ʐu³⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹/

/ʐu³⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹/

(set phrase, largely obsolete) to be pronounced the usual way; to follow a character's typical or conventional reading

set phrase; largely obsolete; set phrase; largely obsolete


十五個吊桶打水——七上八下

十五個吊桶打水——七上八下

十五个吊桶打水——七上八下

Fifteen buckets draw water from the well—seven buckets aboveground, eight below ground.

ㄕˊ ㄨˇ ㄍㄜˋ ㄉㄧㄠˋ ㄊㄨㄥˇ ㄉㄚˇ ㄕㄨㄟˇ

ㄑㄧ ㄕㄤˋ ㄅㄚ ㄒㄧㄚˋ

шиу гэ дяотун дашуй

/ʂʐ̩³⁵ u²¹⁴⁻²¹ kɤ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ti̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹ tʰʊŋ²¹⁴⁻³⁵ tä²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʂu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵ ʂɑŋ⁵¹ pä⁵⁵ ɕi̯ä⁵¹/


孔夫子搬家——淨是書

ㄎㄨㄥˇ ㄈㄨ ㄗˇ ㄅㄢ ㄐㄧㄚ

кунфуцзы баньцзя

/kʰʊŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ fu⁵⁵ t͡sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹ pän⁵⁵ t͡ɕi̯ä⁵⁵ t͡ɕiŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʂʐ̩⁵¹ ʂu⁵⁵/

淨是書／净是书 (jìng shì shū) is a pun on 盡是輸／尽是输 (jìn shì shū, “to have always lost”).

Confucius moves to a new home - everything is just books

to have always lost and never won a single time


刎頸之交

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (刎頸之交):
* → Korean: 문경지교(刎頸之交) (mun'gyeongjigyo)

desc

→ Japanese: 刎頸の交わり (funkei no majiwari) (calque)

ㄨㄣˇ ㄐㄧㄥˇ ㄓ ㄐㄧㄠ

вэньцзинчжицзяо

/wən²¹⁴⁻³⁵ t͡ɕiŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵⁵/

/mɐn¹³ kɛːŋ³⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ kaːu̯⁵⁵/

/mɐn¹³ kɛːŋ³⁵ t͡siː⁵⁵ kaːu̯⁵⁵/

Figuratively, a solid friendship of no regret even if one is to be beheaded for the other, from the Biography of Lian Po and Lin Xiangru in the Records of the Grand Historian (《史記·廉頗藺相如列傳》).

lang

《史記·廉頗藺相如列傳》

《史記·廉頗藺相如列傳》

They were already over and returned to the country; because of his achievement was great, Xiangru was appointed as a high-ranking official, and his rank was higher than Lian Po. Lian Po said: "I have become a general of Zhao, have some great achievements of siege and field battle; still, Lin Xiangru is above me by just achieving a feat by the conversation, and Xiangru was originally a lowly person; I am ashamed and can't bear to be under him." He declared: "When I see Xiangru, I'll be sure to humiliate him." Xiangru heard that and then he was reluctant to meet him. Every time Xiangru went to the court, he described himself as ill, and he didn't want to fight for the rank with Lian Po. Before long, Xiangru went out and observed Lian Po, and Xiangru hid by pulling the car. At that time, his servants remonstrated him together to say: "My lord, the reason why I left from my relatives to serve you is just because I admire your respectable personality. Now you have become in the same order with Lian Po; when Lord Lian stated bad words, you hid for fear of this, and awed too much; even mediocre people would be ashamed for that, and for generals and ministers, much more so! We are dishonorable; let us take our leave." Lin Xiangru insisted that they stay, saying "In your estimation, is General Lian more considerable than the king of Qin?" They said: "No, he isn't." Xiangru said: "Even under the intimidation of the king of Qin, I scolded him in his court and humiliated his men; though I am dull, should I be afraid of General Lian? What I am keenly aware is this, that the only reason why the mighty Qin dare not threaten Zhao with war is the presence of Lian and me. We are two tigers who cannot both survive a conflict with each other. The reason why I do that [not to hold a grudge against Lian] is to put the national emergency above my personal resentment." On hearing of that, Lian Po stripped his clothes off, bore a flogging rod, and came to Lin Xiangru's home via a retainer to apologize, "This mean and lowly person didn't know that you, general, is generous to this much." Finally, they got along with each other and vowed a friendship till death.

Jì bà guī guó, yǐ Xiàng rú gōng dà, bài wèi shàngqīng, wèi zài Lián Pō zhī yòu. Lián Pō yuē: “Wǒ wèi Zhàojiāng, yǒu gōngchéng yězhàn zhī dàgōng, ér Lìn Xiàngrú tú yǐ kǒushé wèi láo, ér wèi jū wǒ shàng, qiě Xiàngrú sù jiànrén, wú xiū, bù rěn wèi zhī xià.” Xuānyán yuē: “Wǒ jiàn Xiàngrú, bì rǔ zhī.” Xiàngrú wén, bù kěn yǔ huì. Xiàngrú měi cháo shí, cháng chēng bìng, bù yù yǔ Lián Pō zhēng liè. Yǐ'ér Xiàngrú chū, wàngjiàn Lián Pō, Xiàngrú yǐn chē bìnì. Yú shì shèrén xiàngyǔ jiàn yuē: “Chén suǒyǐ qù qīnqī ér shì jūn zhě, tú mù jūn zhī gāoyì yě. Jīn jūn yǔ Lián Pō tóng liè, Lián jūn xuān èyán ér jūn wèinì zhī, kǒngjù shū shèn, qiě yōngrén shàng xiū zhī, kuàng yú jiāngxiàng hū! Chén děng bùxiào, qǐng cíqù.” Lìn Xiàngrú gù zhǐzhī, yuē: “Gōng zhī shì Lián jiāngjūn shú yǔ Qínwáng?” Yuē: “Bùruò yě.” Xiàngrú yuē: “Fú yǐ Qínwáng zhī wēi, ér Xiàngrú tíngchì zhī, rǔ qí qúnchén, Xiàngrú suī nú, dú wèi Lián jiāngjūn zāi? Gù wú niàn zhī, qiáng Qín zhīsuǒyǐ bùgǎn jiā bīng yú Zhào zhě, tú yǐ wú liǎng rén zài yě. Jīn liǎnghǔ gòngdòu, qí shì bù jù shēng. Wú suǒyǐ wéi cǐ zhě, yǐ xiān guójiā zhī jí ér hòu sīchóu yě.” Lián Pō wén zhī, ròutǎn fù jīng, yīn bīnkè zhì Lìn Xiàngrú mén xièzuì. Yuē: “Bǐjiàn zhī rén, bù zhī jiāngjūn kuān zhī zhìcǐ yě.” Zú xiāngyǔ huān, wèi wěnjǐngzhījiāo.

既罷歸國，以相如功大，拜為上卿，位在廉頗之右。廉頗曰：「我為趙將，有攻城野戰之大功，而藺相如徒以口舌為勞，而位居我上，且相如素賤人，吾羞，不忍為之下。」宣言曰：「我見相如，必辱之。」相如聞，不肯與會。相如每朝時，常稱病，不欲與廉頗爭列。已而相如出，望見廉頗，相如引車避匿。於是舍人相與諫曰：「臣所以去親戚而事君者，徒慕君之高義也。今君與廉頗同列，廉君宣惡言而君畏匿之，恐懼殊甚，且庸人尚羞之，況於將相乎！臣等不肖，請辭去。」藺相如固止之，曰：「公之視廉將軍孰與秦王？」曰：「不若也。」相如曰：「夫以秦王之威，而相如廷叱之，辱其群臣，相如雖駑，獨畏廉將軍哉？顧吾念之，彊秦之所以不敢加兵於趙者，徒以吾兩人在也。今兩虎共鬥，其勢不俱生。吾所以為此者，以先國家之急而後私讎也。」廉頗聞之，肉袒負荊，因賓客至藺相如門謝罪。曰：「鄙賤之人，不知將軍寬之至此也。」卒相與驩，為刎頸之交。

既罢归国，以相如功大，拜为上卿，位在廉颇之右。廉颇曰：「我为赵将，有攻城野战之大功，而蔺相如徒以口舌为劳，而位居我上，且相如素贱人，吾羞，不忍为之下。」宣言曰：「我见相如，必辱之。」相如闻，不肯与会。相如每朝时，常称病，不欲与廉颇争列。已而相如出，望见廉颇，相如引车避匿。于是舍人相与谏曰：「臣所以去亲戚而事君者，徒慕君之高义也。今君与廉颇同列，廉君宣恶言而君畏匿之，恐惧殊甚，且庸人尚羞之，况于将相乎！臣等不肖，请辞去。」蔺相如固止之，曰：「公之视廉将军孰与秦王？」曰：「不若也。」相如曰：「夫以秦王之威，而相如廷叱之，辱其群臣，相如虽驽，独畏廉将军哉？顾吾念之，强秦之所以不敢加兵于赵者，徒以吾两人在也。今两虎共斗，其势不俱生。吾所以为此者，以先国家之急而后私雠也。」廉颇闻之，肉袒负荆，因宾客至蔺相如门谢罪。曰：「鄙贱之人，不知将军宽之至此也。」卒相与欢，为刎颈之交。

friendship of decapitation; throat-slashing friends

friends sworn to death; eternal friends; best friends who can face hardships together

Lian Po
Lin Xiangru
Qin (state)
Records of the Grand Historian
Zhao (state)


一字之師

/i⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/jɐt̚⁵ t͡siː²² t͡siː⁵⁵ siː⁵⁵/

/i⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵⁵/

/jɐt̚⁵ t͡siː²² t͡siː⁵⁵ siː⁵⁵/

a teacher of one word; one who can significantly improve the quality of another's writing by changing one word and thus becomes his teacher


萬馬奔騰

ㄨㄢˋ ㄇㄚˇ ㄅㄣ ㄊㄥˊ

ваньмабэньтэн

/wän⁵¹ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ pən⁵⁵ tʰɤŋ³⁵/

/maːn²² maː¹³ pɐn⁵⁵ tʰɐŋ²¹/

/wän⁵¹ mä²¹⁴⁻²¹ pən⁵⁵ tʰɤŋ³⁵/

/maːn²² maː¹³ pɐn⁵⁵ tʰɐŋ²¹/

thousands of horses galloping, used to describe the magnificence of a scene


戮力一心

ㄌㄨˋ ㄌㄧˋ ㄧ ㄒㄧㄣ

/lu⁵¹⁻⁵³ li⁵¹ i⁵⁵ ɕin⁵⁵/

/lʊk̚² lɪk̚² jɐt̚⁵ sɐm⁵⁵/

/lu⁵¹⁻⁵³ li⁵¹ i⁵⁵ ɕin⁵⁵/

/lʊk̚² lɪk̚² jɐt̚⁵ sɐm⁵⁵/


買者自負

ㄇㄞˇ ㄓㄜˇ ㄗˋ ㄈㄨˋ

майчжэ цзыфу

/maɪ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ fu⁵¹/

/maɪ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ fu⁵¹/


自高自大

ㄗˋ ㄍㄠ ㄗˋ ㄉㄚˋ

/t͡sz̩⁵¹ kɑʊ̯⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ tä⁵¹/

/t͡siː²² kou̯⁵⁵ t͡siː²² taːi̯²²/

/t͡sz̩⁵¹ kɑʊ̯⁵⁵ t͡sz̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ tä⁵¹/

/t͡siː²² kou̯⁵⁵ t͡siː²² taːi̯²²/

self-important; conceited; arrogant; self-aggrandizing


邪不壓正

ㄒㄧㄝˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄧㄚ ㄓㄥˋ

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹ jä⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɛː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ aːt̚³ t͡sɪŋ³³/

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹ jä⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɛː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ aːt̚³ t͡sɪŋ³³/

邪不勝正 邪不勝正#Chinese

邪不胜正 邪不胜正#Chinese


邪不干正

ㄒㄧㄝˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄍㄢ ㄓㄥˋ

себуганьчжэн

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹ kän⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɛː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ kɔːn⁵⁵ t͡sɪŋ³³/

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹ kän⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɛː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ kɔːn⁵⁵ t͡sɪŋ³³/

邪不勝正 邪不勝正#Chinese

邪不胜正 邪不胜正#Chinese


邪不犯正

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (邪不犯正):
* → Korean: 사불범정(邪不犯正) (sabulbeomjeong)

ㄒㄧㄝˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄈㄢˋ ㄓㄥˋ

себуфаньчжэн

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ fän⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɛː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ faːn²² t͡sɪŋ³³/

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ fän⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɛː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ faːn²² t͡sɪŋ³³/

邪不勝正 邪不勝正#Chinese

邪不胜正 邪不胜正#Chinese


邪不敵正

ㄒㄧㄝˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄉㄧˊ ㄓㄥˋ

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹ ti³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɛː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ tɪk̚² t͡sɪŋ³³/

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹ ti³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɛː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ tɪk̚² t͡sɪŋ³³/

邪不勝正 邪不勝正#Chinese

邪不胜正 邪不胜正#Chinese


有感而發

ㄧㄡˇ ㄍㄢˇ ㄦˊ ㄈㄚ

/joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ kän²¹⁴⁻²¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ fä⁵⁵/

/jɐu̯¹³ kɐm³⁵ jiː²¹ faːt̚³/

/iu⁵³⁻⁴⁴ kam⁵³⁻⁴⁴ li²⁴⁻¹¹ huat̚³²/

/joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ kän²¹⁴⁻²¹ ˀɤɻ³⁵ fä⁵⁵/

/jɐu̯¹³ kɐm³⁵ jiː²¹ faːt̚³/

/iu⁵³⁻⁴⁴ kam⁵³⁻⁴⁴ li²⁴⁻¹¹ huat̚³²/

to express (something) after feeling touched


邪不勝正

ㄒㄧㄝˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄕㄥˋ ㄓㄥˋ

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ ʂɤŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɛː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ sɪŋ³³ t͡sɪŋ³³/

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ ʂɤŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɛː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ sɪŋ³³ t͡sɪŋ³³/


邪不伐正

ㄒㄧㄝˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄈㄚˊ ㄓㄥˋ

ㄒㄧㄝˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄈㄚ ㄓㄥˋ

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹ fä³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹ fä⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɛː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ fɐt̚² t͡sɪŋ³³/

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹ fä³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ pu⁵¹ fä⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɛː²¹ pɐt̚⁵ fɐt̚² t͡sɪŋ³³/

邪不勝正 邪不勝正#Chinese

邪不胜正 邪不胜正#Chinese


算無遺策

ㄙㄨㄢˋ ㄨˊ ㄧˊ ㄘㄜˋ

/su̯än⁵¹ u³⁵ i³⁵ t͡sʰɤ⁵¹/

/su̯än⁵¹ u³⁵ i³⁵ t͡sʰɤ⁵¹/


七上八下

ㄑㄧ ㄕㄤˋ ㄅㄚ ㄒㄧㄚˋ

/t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵ ʂɑŋ⁵¹ pä⁵⁵ ɕi̯ä⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɐt̚⁵ sœːŋ¹³ paːt̚³ haː²²/

/t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵ ʂɑŋ⁵¹ pä⁵⁵ ɕi̯ä⁵¹/

/t͡sʰɐt̚⁵ sœːŋ¹³ paːt̚³ haː²²/

A derivative of the general 七……八…… structure for chengyu. Compare English at sixes and sevens.

have butterflies in one's stomach
have butterflies in one's stomach

to be nervous, anxious or perturbed; in an unsettled state of mind; to have butterflies in one's stomach

(rare) in a mess; to have a messy state of affairs

(Mainland China, politics) the unspoken rule that CCP officials aged less than 67 can remain at office and those aged over 68 must retire


人唔笑，狗都吠

/jɐn²¹ m̩²¹ siːu̯³³ kɐu̯³⁵ tou̯⁵⁵ fɐi̯²²/

(Cantonese, colloquial) to be laughable; to be ludicrous


圖文不符

ㄊㄨˊ ㄨㄣˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄈㄨˊ

/tʰu³⁵ wən³⁵ pu⁵¹ fu³⁵/

/tʰou̯²¹ mɐn²¹ pɐt̚⁵ fuː²¹/

/tʰu³⁵ wən³⁵ pu⁵¹ fu³⁵/

/tʰou̯²¹ mɐn²¹ pɐt̚⁵ fuː²¹/


番仔鬍鬚——無半撇

/huan⁴⁴⁻²² a⁵³ hɔ²⁴⁻²² t͡sʰiu⁴⁴ bo²⁴⁻²² puã²¹⁻⁵³ pʰiɛt̚³²/


門牌第一號——頭家

/mŋ̍²⁴⁻²² pai²⁴ te²²⁻²¹ it̚³²⁻⁴ ho²² tʰau²⁴⁻²² ke⁴⁴/

/mŋ̍²⁴⁻¹¹ pai²⁴ te³³⁻¹¹ it̚³²⁻⁴ ho³³ tʰau²⁴⁻¹¹ ke⁴⁴/

/mŋ̍²³⁻³³ pai²³ te³³⁻²¹ it̚³²⁻⁴ hɤ³³ tʰau²³⁻³³ ke⁴⁴/


阿兄徛樓頂——高高在上

/a⁴⁴⁻³³ hiã⁴⁴ kʰia³³⁻²¹ lau²³⁻³³ tiɪŋ⁴¹ kɤ⁴⁴⁻³³ kɤ⁴⁴ t͡sai³³⁻²¹ siɔŋ³³/

/a⁴⁴⁻²² hiã⁴⁴ kʰia²²⁻²¹ lau²⁴⁻²² tiɪŋ⁵³ ko⁴⁴⁻²² ko⁴⁴ t͡sai²²⁻²¹ siɔŋ²²/

/a⁴⁴⁻³³ hiã⁴⁴ kʰia³³⁻¹¹ lau²⁴⁻¹¹ tiɪŋ⁵³ ko⁴⁴⁻³³ ko⁴⁴ t͡sai³³⁻¹¹ siɔŋ³³/

高高 (“high”) is a pun on 哥哥 (“elder brother”).

(Hokkien) setting oneself high above the masses; not in touch with the common people or reality; aloof and remote


光芒萬丈

ㄍㄨㄤ ㄇㄤˊ ㄨㄢˋ ㄓㄤˋ

гуанманваньчжан

/ku̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ mɑŋ³⁵ wän⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂɑŋ⁵¹/

/kʷɔːŋ⁵⁵ mɔːŋ²¹ maːn²² t͡sœːŋ²²/

/ku̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ mɑŋ³⁵ wän⁵¹⁻⁵³ ʈ͡ʂɑŋ⁵¹/

/kʷɔːŋ⁵⁵ mɔːŋ²¹ maːn²² t͡sœːŋ²²/

Arthur is a knight in shining armor (literally: knight who (emits) countless rays of light).

Āsè shì yīwèi guāngmángwànzhàng de qíshì.

阿瑟是一位光芒萬丈的騎士。

阿瑟是一位光芒万丈的骑士。


一時三刻

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵ sän⁵⁵ kʰɤ⁵¹/

/jɐt̚⁵ siː²¹ saːm⁵⁵ hɐk̚⁵/

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵ sän⁵⁵ kʰɤ⁵¹/

/jɐt̚⁵ siː²¹ saːm⁵⁵ hɐk̚⁵/

(literary or Cantonese) brief period of time (especially in negative sentences)


早知拉尿，企到天光

zau³ di¹ lai² ngiau⁴, ki¹ dau⁴ tiên¹ guong¹

zo³ di¹ lai² ngiau⁴, ki¹ do⁴ tian¹ gong¹

/t͡so³¹ ti²⁴ lai̯¹¹ ŋi̯au̯⁵⁵ kʰi²⁴⁻¹¹ to⁵⁵ tʰi̯en²⁴⁻¹¹ koŋ²⁴/

/t͡sau³¹ ti⁴⁴⁻³⁵ laɪ¹¹ ŋiau⁵³ kʰi⁴⁴⁻³⁵ tau⁵³ tʰiɛn⁴⁴ kuɔŋ⁴⁴/


早知今日，悔不當初

if one had known about this day from the beginning, there would have been no point in starting

ㄗㄠˇ ㄓ ㄐㄧㄣ ㄖˋ

ㄏㄨㄟˇ ㄅㄨˋ ㄉㄤ ㄔㄨ

цзаочжи цзиньжи

хуэй бу данчу

/t͡sɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡ɕin⁵⁵ ʐ̩⁵¹ xu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ pu⁵¹ tɑŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰu⁵⁵/


手停口停

/sɐu̯³⁵ tʰɪŋ²¹ hɐu̯³⁵ tʰɪŋ²¹/

/sɐu̯³⁵ tʰɪŋ²¹ hɐu̯³⁵ tʰɪŋ²¹/

(Cantonese) living on a starvation wage; barely able to feed oneself; living on the edge


手指拗出唔拗入

/sɐu̯³⁵ t͡siː³⁵ aːu̯³⁵ t͡sʰɵt̚⁵ m̩²¹ aːu̯³⁵ jɐp̚²/

(Cantonese) to take the side of outsiders rather than one's own


虎毒不食子

A tiger, though vicious, will not eat its own son.

ㄏㄨˇ ㄉㄨˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄕˊ ㄗˇ

/xu²¹⁴⁻²¹ tu³⁵ pu⁵¹ ʂʐ̩³⁵ t͡sz̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/fuː³⁵ tʊk̚² pɐt̚⁵ sɪk̚² t͡siː³⁵/

/fuː³⁵ tʊk̚² pɐt̚⁵ sɪk̚² t͡siː³⁵/

A person, no matter how vicious they are, will not harm their own children.


淺嘗輒止

ㄑㄧㄢˇ ㄔㄤˊ ㄓㄜˊ ㄓˇ

цяньчанчжэчжи

cjanʹčančžɛčži

/t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤ³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sʰiːn³⁵ sœːŋ²¹ t͡siːp̚³ t͡siː³⁵/

/t͡sʰiːn³⁵ sœːŋ²¹ t͡siːp̚³ t͡siː³⁵/

to stop after getting a little knowledge of a subject and not study further or deeper


身水身汗

/sɐn⁵⁵ sɵy̯³⁵ sɐn⁵⁵ hɔːn²²/

/sɐn⁵⁵ sɵy̯³⁵ sɐn⁵⁵ hɔːn²²/

(Cantonese, of a person) to be covered in sweat


嘈喧巴閉

/t͡sʰou̯²¹ hyːn⁵⁵ paː⁵⁵ pɐi̯³³/

/t͡sʰou̯²¹ hyːn⁵⁵ paː⁵⁵ pɐi̯³³/

(Cantonese) to be extremely noisy and rowdy


裙甩褲甩

/kʷʰɐn²¹ lɐt̚⁵ fuː³³ lɐt̚⁵/

/kʷʰɐn²¹ lɐt̚⁵ fuː³³ lɐt̚⁵/


陰聲細氣

/jɐm⁵⁵ sɛːŋ⁵⁵ sɐi̯³³ hei̯³³/

/jɐm⁵⁵ sɛːŋ⁵⁵ sɐi̯³³ hei̯³³/

(Cantonese) soft-spoken; speaking softly


死蛇爛鱔

/sei̯³⁵ sɛː²¹ laːn²² siːn¹³/

/sei̯³⁵ sɛː²¹ laːn²² siːn¹³/

(Cantonese) to be a lazy bum; to be slobbish


身有屎

/sɐn⁵⁵ jɐu̯¹³ siː³⁵/

/sɐn⁵⁵ jɐu̯¹³ siː³⁵/

He kept looking away from the teacher. He must have done something wrong!

keoi⁵ deoi³ ngaan⁵ jat¹ lou⁶ bei⁶ hoi¹ lou⁵ si¹, jat¹ ding⁶ san¹ jau⁵ si² laa¹!

佢對眼一路避開老師，一定身有屎啦！

佢对眼一路避开老师，一定身有屎啦！

(Cantonese) to have done something wrong, which could be used against the person if exposed


扮鬼扮馬

/paːn²² kʷɐi̯³⁵ paːn²² maː¹³/

/paːn²² kʷɐi̯³⁵ paːn²² maː¹³/

(Cantonese) to dress up as ghosts and spirits

(Cantonese, figuratively) to deliberately trick by feigning


因材施教

ㄧㄣ ㄘㄞˊ ㄕ ㄐㄧㄠˋ

иньцайшицзяо

/in⁵⁵ t͡sʰaɪ̯³⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/jɐn⁵⁵ t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹ siː⁵⁵ kaːu̯³³/

/in⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sai²⁴⁻²² si⁴⁴⁻²² kau²¹/

/in⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sai¹³⁻²² si⁴⁴⁻²² kau²¹/

/in⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sai²⁴⁻¹¹ si⁴⁴⁻³³ kau¹¹/

/in⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sai²³⁻³³ si⁴⁴⁻³³ kau²¹/

/in⁵⁵ t͡sʰaɪ̯³⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/jɐn⁵⁵ t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹ siː⁵⁵ kaːu̯³³/

/in⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sai²⁴⁻²² si⁴⁴⁻²² kau²¹/

/in⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sai¹³⁻²² si⁴⁴⁻²² kau²¹/

/in⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sai²⁴⁻¹¹ si⁴⁴⁻³³ kau¹¹/

/in⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sai²³⁻³³ si⁴⁴⁻³³ kau²¹/

to teach according to the student's ability


食飽飯等屎屙

to have eaten enough and be waiting to shit

/sɪk̚² paːu̯³⁵ faːn²² tɐŋ³⁵ siː³⁵ ɔː⁵⁵/

/sɪk̚² paːu̯³⁵ faːn²² tɐŋ³⁵ siː³⁵ ɔː⁵⁵/

(Cantonese, derogatory) to have nothing better to do


食飽無代誌

/t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ pa⁵³ bo²⁴⁻²² tai²²⁻²¹ t͡si²¹/

/t͡sia(ʔ)²⁴⁻² pa⁵⁵⁴ bo²⁴⁻²² tai⁴¹⁻²² t͡si⁴¹/

/t͡sia(ʔ)¹²¹⁻²¹ pa⁵³ bo¹³⁻²² tai²²⁻²¹ t͡si²¹/

/t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻¹¹ pa⁵³ bo²⁴⁻¹¹ tai³³⁻¹¹ t͡si¹¹/

/t͡sia(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ pa⁴¹ bɤ²³⁻³³ tai³³⁻²¹ t͡si²¹/


吃飽沒事做

ㄔ ㄅㄠˇ ㄇㄟˊ ㄕˋ ㄗㄨㄛˋ

чибао мэй ши цзо

/ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩⁵⁵ pɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ meɪ̯³⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹/


做呢物

/t͡so²¹³⁻⁵⁵ ni⁵⁵⁻¹¹ mueʔ⁴/

/t͡so²¹³⁻⁵⁵ ni⁵⁵⁻¹¹ mueʔ⁴/


食飽無屎放

/t͡sia(ʔ)⁴³⁻²¹ pa⁴² bo²⁴⁻²¹ sai⁴² paŋ²¹/

(Singapore Hokkien, vulgar) to have nothing better to do


暢通易達

ㄔㄤˋ ㄊㄨㄥ ㄧˋ ㄉㄚˊ

/ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ⁵¹ tʰʊŋ⁵⁵ i⁵¹ tä³⁵/

/t͡sʰœːŋ³³ tʰʊŋ⁵⁵ jiː²² taːt̚²/

/ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ⁵¹ tʰʊŋ⁵⁵ i⁵¹ tä³⁵/

/t͡sʰœːŋ³³ tʰʊŋ⁵⁵ jiː²² taːt̚²/

(chiefly Hong Kong) free and easily accessible (mainly used to describe facilities designed for the handicapped)


車毀人亡

ㄔㄜ ㄏㄨㄟˇ ㄖㄣˊ ㄨㄤˊ

чэхуэйжэньван

/ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵⁵ xu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʐən³⁵ wɑŋ³⁵/

/t͡sʰɛː⁵⁵ wɐi̯³⁵ jɐn²¹ mɔːŋ²¹/

/ʈ͡ʂʰɤ⁵⁵ xu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʐən³⁵ wɑŋ³⁵/

/t͡sʰɛː⁵⁵ wɐi̯³⁵ jɐn²¹ mɔːŋ²¹/

the vehicle is destroyed and the people die in the crash


你行你上，不行別屄屄

Chinglish: you can you up, no can no bibi, you can you up, no can no BB

你行你上，不行别屄屄
你行你上，不行別嗶嗶
你行你上，不行別逼逼
你行你上，不行別比比
你行你上，不行別BB
你行你上，不行別bb

ㄋㄧˇ ㄒㄧㄥˊ ㄋㄧˇ ㄕㄤˋ

ㄅㄨˋ ㄒㄧㄥˊ ㄅㄧㄝˊ ㄅㄧ ˙ㄅㄧ

ни син ни шан

бусин бе биби

/ni²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕiŋ³⁵ ni²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂɑŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ pu⁵¹ ɕiŋ³⁵ pi̯ɛ³⁵ pi⁵⁵ b̥i²/

(neologism, slang) Go ahead and do it if you think you can, otherwise stop the criticism. / Put up or shut up.


漸行漸遠

ㄐㄧㄢˋ ㄒㄧㄥˊ ㄐㄧㄢˋ ㄩㄢˇ

цзяньсинцзяньюань

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ ɕiŋ³⁵ t͡ɕi̯ɛn⁵¹ ɥɛn²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡siːm²² hɐŋ²¹ t͡siːm²² jyːn¹³/

/t͡siːm²² hɐŋ²¹ t͡siːm²² jyːn¹³/

to become increasingly distant; to grow apart


歡呼雀躍

ㄏㄨㄢ ㄏㄨ ㄑㄩㄝˋ ㄩㄝˋ

хуаньхуцюэюэ

/xu̯än⁵⁵ xu⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰy̯ɛ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ɥɛ⁵¹/

/fuːn⁵⁵ fuː⁵⁵ t͡sœːk̚³ jœːk̚²/

/xu̯än⁵⁵ xu⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰy̯ɛ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ɥɛ⁵¹/

/fuːn⁵⁵ fuː⁵⁵ t͡sœːk̚³ jœːk̚²/


反腐倡廉

ㄈㄢˇ ㄈㄨˇ ㄔㄤˋ ㄌㄧㄢˊ

фаньфучанлянь

/fän²¹⁴⁻³⁵ fu²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ⁵¹ li̯ɛn³⁵/

/faːn³⁵ fuː²² t͡sʰœːŋ³³ liːm²¹/

/fän²¹⁴⁻³⁵ fu²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʈ͡ʂʰɑŋ⁵¹ li̯ɛn³⁵/

/faːn³⁵ fuː²² t͡sʰœːŋ³³ liːm²¹/

(neologism, politics, officialese) to fight corruption and uphold integrity; to fight corruption and build a clean government


周身唔聚財

/t͡sɐu̯⁵⁵ sɐn⁵⁵ m̩²¹ t͡sɵy̯²² t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹/

(Cantonese) to feel uncomfortable; to be ill at ease


薪火相傳

ㄒㄧㄣ ㄏㄨㄛˇ ㄒㄧㄤ ㄔㄨㄢˊ

синьхосянчуань

/ɕin⁵⁵ xu̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰu̯än³⁵/

/sɐn⁵⁵ fɔː³⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰyːn²¹/

/sin⁴⁴⁻³³ hue⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ siɔŋ²¹⁻⁴¹ tʰuan²³/

/sin⁴⁴⁻³³ he⁵³⁻⁴⁴ siɔŋ¹¹⁻⁵³ tʰuan²⁴/

/seŋ³³⁻²³ hue⁵²⁻³⁵ siaŋ³³⁻²³ tʰuaŋ⁵⁵/

/ɕin⁵⁵ xu̯ɔ²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕi̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰu̯än³⁵/

/sɐn⁵⁵ fɔː³⁵ sœːŋ⁵⁵ t͡sʰyːn²¹/

/sin⁴⁴⁻³³ hue⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ siɔŋ²¹⁻⁴¹ tʰuan²³/

/sin⁴⁴⁻³³ he⁵³⁻⁴⁴ siɔŋ¹¹⁻⁵³ tʰuan²⁴/

/seŋ³³⁻²³ hue⁵²⁻³⁵ siaŋ³³⁻²³ tʰuaŋ⁵⁵/

to pass down (good tradition, knowledge, skill, etc.) from generation to generation


一鋪清袋

/jɐt̚⁵ pʰou̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰɪŋ⁵⁵ tɔːi̯²²⁻³⁵/

/jɐt̚⁵ pʰou̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰɪŋ⁵⁵ tɔːi̯²²⁻³⁵/

(Cantonese) to lose all money or everything at once


殺良冒功

ㄕㄚ ㄌㄧㄤˊ ㄇㄠˋ ㄍㄨㄥ

/ʂä⁵⁵ li̯ɑŋ³⁵ mɑʊ̯⁵¹ kʊŋ⁵⁵/

/ʂä⁵⁵ li̯ɑŋ³⁵ mɑʊ̯⁵¹ kʊŋ⁵⁵/

to kill or incriminate someone innocent, for a reward from the authorities or to make one's (military or police) performance look better


大展鴻圖

ㄉㄚˋ ㄓㄢˇ ㄏㄨㄥˊ ㄊㄨˊ

дачжаньхунту

/tä⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂän²¹⁴⁻²¹ xʊŋ³⁵ tʰu³⁵/

/taːi̯²² t͡siːn³⁵ hʊŋ²¹ tʰou̯²¹/

/tä⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂän²¹⁴⁻²¹ xʊŋ³⁵ tʰu³⁵/

/taːi̯²² t͡siːn³⁵ hʊŋ²¹ tʰou̯²¹/

大展宏圖 大展宏圖#Chinese

大展宏图 大展宏图#Chinese

Alternative form of 大展宏圖／大展宏图 (dàzhǎnhóngtú, “to carry out one's great plan”)


裝聾作啞

ㄓㄨㄤ ㄌㄨㄥˊ ㄗㄨㄛˋ ㄧㄚˇ

чжуанлунцзоя

/ʈ͡ʂu̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ lʊŋ³⁵ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ jä²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sɔːŋ⁵⁵ lʊŋ²¹ t͡sɔːk̚³ aː³⁵/

/ʈ͡ʂu̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ lʊŋ³⁵ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ jä²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sɔːŋ⁵⁵ lʊŋ²¹ t͡sɔːk̚³ aː³⁵/

to pretend to not know; to deliberately to not ask or listen


大展宏圖

ㄉㄚˋ ㄓㄢˇ ㄏㄨㄥˊ ㄊㄨˊ

дачжаньхунту

/tä⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂän²¹⁴⁻²¹ xʊŋ³⁵ tʰu³⁵/

/taːi̯²² t͡siːn³⁵ wɐŋ²¹ tʰou̯²¹/

/tä⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂän²¹⁴⁻²¹ xʊŋ³⁵ tʰu³⁵/

/taːi̯²² t͡siːn³⁵ wɐŋ²¹ tʰou̯²¹/


首尾呼應

ㄕㄡˇ ㄨㄟˇ ㄏㄨ ㄧㄥˋ

/ʂoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ weɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu⁵⁵ iŋ⁵¹/

/sɐu̯³⁵ mei̯¹³ fuː⁵⁵ jɪŋ³³/

/ʂoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ weɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ xu⁵⁵ iŋ⁵¹/

/sɐu̯³⁵ mei̯¹³ fuː⁵⁵ jɪŋ³³/

the end (of a composition) echoes the beginning


斗轉星移

the Big Dipper has turned and the stars have moved

ㄉㄡˇ ㄓㄨㄢˇ ㄒㄧㄥ ㄧˊ

доучжуаньсинъи

/toʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂu̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕiŋ⁵⁵ i³⁵/

/tɐu̯³⁵ t͡syːn³⁵ sɪŋ⁵⁵ jiː²¹/

/toʊ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂu̯än²¹⁴⁻²¹ ɕiŋ⁵⁵ i³⁵/

/tɐu̯³⁵ t͡syːn³⁵ sɪŋ⁵⁵ jiː²¹/


二一添作五

ㄦˋ ㄧ ㄊㄧㄢ ㄗㄨㄛˋ ㄨˇ

эр и тяньцзо у

/ˀɤɻ⁵¹ i⁵⁵ tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ u²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/jiː²² jɐt̚⁵ tʰiːm⁵⁵ t͡sɔːk̚³ ŋ̍¹³/

/jiː²² jɐt̚⁵ tʰiːm⁵⁵ t͡sɔːk̚³ ŋ̍¹³/

(division rule in abacus reckoning) one half is zero point five; 1/2=0.5

(figurative) to divide fairly between 2 people; to go fifty-fifty


三一三十一

ㄙㄢ ㄧ ㄙㄢ ㄕˊ ㄧ

сань и саньшии

/sän⁵⁵ i⁵⁵ sän⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩³⁵ i⁵⁵/

/saːm⁵⁵ jɐt̚⁵ saːm⁵⁵ sɐp̚² jɐt̚⁵/

/sän⁵⁵ i⁵⁵ sän⁵⁵ ʂʐ̩³⁵ i⁵⁵/

/saːm⁵⁵ jɐt̚⁵ saːm⁵⁵ sɐp̚² jɐt̚⁵/

(division rule in abacus reckoning) one divided by three is zero point three, leaving a one to the next digit; 1/3=0.3……0.1

(figurative) to divide fairly between 3 people


不絕如縷

ㄅㄨˋ ㄐㄩㄝˊ ㄖㄨˊ ㄌㄩˇ

/pu⁵¹ t͡ɕy̯ɛ³⁵ ʐu³⁵ ly²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/pɐt̚⁵ t͡syːt̚² jyː²¹ lɵy̯¹³/

/pu⁵¹ t͡ɕy̯ɛ³⁵ ʐu³⁵ ly²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/pɐt̚⁵ t͡syːt̚² jyː²¹ lɵy̯¹³/

The sound [of the xiao] was like that of whistling; it was like whining, like admiring, like crying, like complaining. It was lingering in the air, faint and long.

1082, Su Shi, Former Ode on the Red Cliffs

Qí shēng wūwūrán, rú yuàn, rú mù, rú qì, rú sù, yú yīn niǎoniǎo, bùjuérúlǚ.

其聲嗚嗚然，如怨、如慕、如泣、如訴，餘音嫋嫋，不絕如縷。

其声呜呜然，如怨、如慕、如泣、如诉，余音袅袅，不绝如缕。

Afterwards, such donations came in a constant stream, and people were soon accustomed to it: […]

2010 April 2, 《57年行善不绝如缕》, in 《京江晚报》, page 7

suíhòu, zhèyàng de juānkuǎn bùjuérúlǚ, jiàn chéng chángtài: […]

隨後，這樣的捐款不絕如縷、漸成常態：[…]

随后，这样的捐款不绝如缕、渐成常态：[…]

2011 November 2, 《自然法为何不绝如缕》, in 《法制日报》, page 10

自然法為何不絕如縷？

自然法为何不绝如缕？

In the five dynasties of Wei, Jin, Northen and Southern, Sui and Tang, etymology had been undergoing continuous development.

2020 October 5, 曾昭聪 (Zeng Zhaocong), 《建设中国特色汉语词源学》, in 《光明日报》 [Guangming Daily], →ISSN, page 06

Zài Wèi-Jìn Nán-Běi Cháo Suí-Táng Wǔdài zhè yī lìshǐ shíqī, cíyuánxué de fāzhǎn bùjuérúlǚ.

在魏晉南北朝隋唐五代這一歷史時期，詞源學的發展不絕如縷。

在魏晋南北朝隋唐五代这一历史时期，词源学的发展不绝如缕。

(proscribed) to be continuous; to be unceasing


民窮財盡

ㄇㄧㄣˊ ㄑㄩㄥˊ ㄘㄞˊ ㄐㄧㄣˋ

миньцюнцайцзинь

/min³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ʊŋ³⁵ t͡sʰaɪ̯³⁵ t͡ɕin⁵¹/

/mɐn²¹ kʰʊŋ²¹ t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹ t͡sɵn²²/

/min³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ʊŋ³⁵ t͡sʰaɪ̯³⁵ t͡ɕin⁵¹/

/mɐn²¹ kʰʊŋ²¹ t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹ t͡sɵn²²/


魂牽夢縈

concerning with souls and getting carried away into dreams

ㄏㄨㄣˊ ㄑㄧㄢ ㄇㄥˋ ㄧㄥˊ

хуньцяньмэнъин

/xu̯ən³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ mɤŋ⁵¹ iŋ³⁵/

/wɐn²¹ hiːn⁵⁵ mʊŋ²² jɪŋ²¹/

/xu̯ən³⁵ t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ mɤŋ⁵¹ iŋ³⁵/

/wɐn²¹ hiːn⁵⁵ mʊŋ²² jɪŋ²¹/

(figurative) missing or longing for someone very much


回嗔作喜

ㄏㄨㄟˊ ㄔㄣ ㄗㄨㄛˋ ㄒㄧˇ

хуэйчэнь цзоси

/xu̯eɪ̯³⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰən⁵⁵ t͡su̯ɔ⁵¹ ɕi²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/


雖遲但到

ㄙㄨㄟ ㄔˊ ㄉㄢˋ ㄉㄠˋ

суй чи дань дао

/su̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩³⁵ tän⁵¹⁻⁵³ tɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/su̯eɪ̯⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩³⁵ tän⁵¹⁻⁵³ tɑʊ̯⁵¹/

Possibly a short version of 雖然會遲到，但是最終會到來 deriving from the popular sentence 正義雖然會遲到，但是永遠不會缺席 (Justice may arrive late, but never will it be absent).

lang

雖然會遲到，但是最終會到來

雖然會遲到，但是最終會到來

正義雖然會遲到，但是永遠不會缺席

正義雖然會遲到，但是永遠不會缺席


屎坑關刀

/siː³⁵ haːŋ⁵⁵ kʷaːn⁵⁵ tou̯⁵⁵/

/siː³⁵ haːŋ⁵⁵ kʷaːn⁵⁵ tou̯⁵⁵/

屎坑關刀——文又唔得，武又唔得 屎坑關刀——文又唔得，武又唔得#Chinese

屎坑关刀——文又唔得，武又唔得 屎坑关刀——文又唔得，武又唔得#Chinese

(Cantonese) to lack ability and be useless. Short for 屎坑關刀——文又唔得，武又唔得／屎坑关刀——文又唔得，武又唔得.


屎坑關刀——文又唔得，武又唔得

head

屎坑關刀——文又唔得，武又唔得

/siː³⁵ haːŋ⁵⁵ kʷaːn⁵⁵ tou̯⁵⁵ mɐn²¹ jɐu̯²² m̩²¹ tɐk̚⁵ mou̯¹³ jɐu̯²² m̩²¹ tɐk̚⁵/

A pun based on the homophony of 文 (man4, “literary”) and 聞／闻 (man4, “to smell”), and the homophony of 武 (mou5, “martial arts”) and 舞 (mou5, “to dance”).

屎坑关刀——文又唔得，武又唔得

Guan Yu's blade in a latrine - not good at both literature and martial arts

(Cantonese) to lack ability and be useless


天差地別

ㄊㄧㄢ ㄔㄚ ㄉㄧˋ ㄅㄧㄝˊ

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵ ti⁵¹ pi̯ɛ³⁵/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ t͡sʰaː⁵⁵ tei̯²² piːt̚²/

/tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰä⁵⁵ ti⁵¹ pi̯ɛ³⁵/

/tʰiːn⁵⁵ t͡sʰaː⁵⁵ tei̯²² piːt̚²/

to be completely different; to be poles apart


哩哩邋邋

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴⁻²² lap̚³²⁻⁴ lap̚³²/

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴ lap̚³²⁻⁵ lap̚³²/

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴⁻²² lap̚³²⁻⁴ lap̚³²/

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴ lap̚³²⁻⁵ lap̚³²/

(Xiamen and Zhangzhou Hokkien) sloppy and untidy (of one's clothing)


拉胸落甲

/la(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ hiɪŋ⁴⁴⁻²² la(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ kaʔ³²/

/la(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ hiɪŋ⁴⁴⁻²² la(ʔ)³²⁻⁵³ kaʔ³²/

(Zhangzhou Hokkien) sloppy and untidy (of one's clothing)


哩哩落落

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴⁻²² lak̚³²⁻⁴ lak̚³²/

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴⁻²² lau²¹⁻⁵³ lau²¹/

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴ lak̚³²⁻⁵ lak̚³²/

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴⁻²² lak̚³²⁻⁴ lak̚³²/

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴⁻²² lau²¹⁻⁵³ lau²¹/

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴ lak̚³²⁻⁵ lak̚³²/

(Xiamen and Zhangzhou Hokkien) messy and untidy (of clothes or belongings)

(Xiamen and Zhangzhou Hokkien) having one's things falling down or being left behind


哩哩攝攝

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴ liap̚³²⁻⁵ liap̚³²/

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴ liap̚³²⁻⁵ liap̚³²/

(Zhangzhou Hokkien) surreptitious; furtive; sneaky


哩哩律律

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴⁻²² lut̚⁴⁻³² lut̚⁴/

/li²⁴⁻²² li²⁴ lut̚²⁴⁻² lut̚²⁴/

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴ lut̚¹²¹⁻²¹ lut̚¹²¹/

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴⁻²² lut̚⁴⁻³² lut̚⁴/

/li²⁴⁻²² li²⁴ lut̚²⁴⁻² lut̚²⁴/

/li⁴⁴⁻²² li⁴⁴ lut̚¹²¹⁻²¹ lut̚¹²¹/

nineteen to the dozen
nineteen to the dozen

(Hokkien) speaking very fast; talking nineteen to the dozen


嗤嗤嗆嗆

/t͡sʰi⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sʰi⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sʰŋ̍(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ t͡sʰŋ̍ʔ⁴/

/t͡sʰĩ(ʔ)²⁴⁻² t͡sʰĩ(ʔ)²⁴⁻² t͡sʰŋ̍(ʔ)²⁴⁻² t͡sʰŋ̍ʔ²⁴/

/t͡sʰi⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sʰi⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sʰŋ̍(ʔ)¹²¹⁻²¹ t͡sʰŋ̍ʔ¹²¹/

(Southern Min) sound one makes when breathing with a clogged nose

(Xiamen and Zhangzhou Hokkien) murmuring; grumbling (done behind someone's back or in private)


海底撈針

ㄏㄞˇ ㄉㄧˇ ㄌㄠ ㄓㄣ

хайдилаочжэнь

/xaɪ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ti²¹⁴⁻²¹ lɑʊ̯⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂən⁵⁵/

/hɔːi̯³⁵ tɐi̯³⁵ laːu̯²¹ t͡sɐm⁵⁵/

/hai⁵³⁻⁴⁴ tue⁵³⁻⁴⁴ lo²⁴⁻²² t͡siam⁴⁴/

/xaɪ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ti²¹⁴⁻²¹ lɑʊ̯⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂən⁵⁵/

/hɔːi̯³⁵ tɐi̯³⁵ laːu̯²¹ t͡sɐm⁵⁵/

/hai⁵³⁻⁴⁴ tue⁵³⁻⁴⁴ lo²⁴⁻²² t͡siam⁴⁴/

needle in a haystack
needle in a haystack


東海撈針

ㄉㄨㄥ ㄏㄞˇ ㄌㄠ ㄓㄣ

дунхайлаочжэнь

/tʊŋ⁵⁵ xaɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ lɑʊ̯⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂən⁵⁵/

/tʊŋ⁵⁵ hɔːi̯³⁵ laːu̯²¹ t͡sɐm⁵⁵/

/tʊŋ⁵⁵ xaɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ lɑʊ̯⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂən⁵⁵/

/tʊŋ⁵⁵ hɔːi̯³⁵ laːu̯²¹ t͡sɐm⁵⁵/

大海撈針 大海撈針#Chinese

大海捞针 大海捞针#Chinese


水底撈針

ㄕㄨㄟˇ ㄉㄧˇ ㄌㄠ ㄓㄣ

шуйдилаочжэнь

/ʂu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ti²¹⁴⁻²¹ lɑʊ̯⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂən⁵⁵/

/sɵy̯³⁵ tɐi̯³⁵ laːu̯²¹ t͡sɐm⁵⁵/

/ʂu̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ti²¹⁴⁻²¹ lɑʊ̯⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂən⁵⁵/

/sɵy̯³⁵ tɐi̯³⁵ laːu̯²¹ t͡sɐm⁵⁵/

大海撈針 大海撈針#Chinese

大海捞针 大海捞针#Chinese


四兩破千斤

/si²¹⁻⁵³ niũ⁵³ pʰo²¹⁻⁵³ t͡sʰiɪŋ⁴⁴⁻²² kun⁴⁴/

/si⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ niũ⁵⁵⁴ pʰo⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ t͡sʰuĩ³³ kun³³/

/si²¹⁻⁵³ niɔ̃⁵³ pʰo²¹⁻⁵³ t͡sʰiɪŋ⁴⁴⁻²² kun⁴⁴/

/si²¹⁻⁵³ niũ⁵³ pʰua²¹⁻⁵³ t͡sʰiɪŋ⁴⁴⁻²² kun⁴⁴/

/si⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ niũ⁵⁵⁴ pʰua⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ t͡sʰuĩ³³ kun³³/

(Hokkien) a huge return for a very small investment; a big payoff for a small effort


阻手阻腳

/t͡sɔː³⁵ sɐu̯³⁵ t͡sɔː³⁵ kœːk̚³/

/t͡sɔː³⁵ sɐu̯³⁵ t͡sɔː³⁵ kœːk̚³/

(Cantonese) to be in the way; to be a hindrance


阻頭阻勢

/t͡sɔː³⁵ tʰɐu̯²¹ t͡sɔː³⁵ sɐi̯³³/

/t͡sɔː³⁵ tʰɐu̯²¹ t͡sɔː³⁵ sɐi̯³³/


國士無雙

ㄍㄨㄛˊ ㄕˋ ㄨˊ ㄕㄨㄤ

/ku̯ɔ³⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹ u³⁵ ʂu̯ɑŋ⁵⁵/

/kʷɔːk̚³ siː²² mou̯²¹ sœːŋ⁵⁵/

/ku̯ɔ³⁵ ʂʐ̩⁵¹ u³⁵ ʂu̯ɑŋ⁵⁵/

/kʷɔːk̚³ siː²² mou̯²¹ sœːŋ⁵⁵/

distinguished person of talent in the country that is matchless


居高不下

ㄐㄩ ㄍㄠ ㄅㄨˋ ㄒㄧㄚˋ

/t͡ɕy⁵⁵ kɑʊ̯⁵⁵ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ ɕi̯ä⁵¹/

/kɵy̯⁵⁵ kou̯⁵⁵ pɐt̚⁵ haː²²/

/t͡ɕy⁵⁵ kɑʊ̯⁵⁵ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ ɕi̯ä⁵¹/

/kɵy̯⁵⁵ kou̯⁵⁵ pɐt̚⁵ haː²²/

to stay high (and not decrease); to remain high


諸葛亮借東風——神機妙算

諸葛亮借東風——神機妙算

诸葛亮借东风——神机妙算

Zhuge Liang borrows the easterly wind—a brilliant plan

ㄓㄨ ㄍㄜˇ ㄌㄧㄤˋ ㄐㄧㄝˋ ㄉㄨㄥ ㄈㄥ

ㄕㄣˊ ㄐㄧ ㄇㄧㄠˋ ㄙㄨㄢˋ

ㄓㄨ ㄍㄜˊ ㄌㄧㄤˋ ㄐㄧㄝˋ ㄉㄨㄥ ㄈㄥ

Чжугэ Лян цзе дунфэн

шэньцзимяосуань

/ʈ͡ʂu⁵⁵ kɤ²¹⁴⁻²¹ li̯ɑŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi̯ɛ⁵¹ tʊŋ⁵⁵ fɤŋ⁵⁵ ʂən³⁵ t͡ɕi⁵⁵ mi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ su̯än⁵¹/

/ʈ͡ʂu⁵⁵ kɤ³⁵ li̯ɑŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ t͡ɕi̯ɛ⁵¹ tʊŋ⁵⁵ fɤŋ⁵⁵ ʂən³⁵ t͡ɕi⁵⁵ mi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ su̯än⁵¹/

/t͡syː⁵⁵ kɔːt̚³ lœːŋ²² t͡sɛː³³ tʊŋ⁵⁵ fʊŋ⁵⁵ sɐn²¹ kei̯⁵⁵ miːu̯²² syːn³³/


海底摸月

/hɔːi̯³⁵ tɐi̯⁵⁵ mɔː⁵⁵ jyːt̚²⁻³⁵/

/hɔːi̯³⁵ tɐi̯³⁵ mɔː³⁵ jyːt̚²/

/hɔːi̯³⁵ tɐi̯⁵⁵ mɔː⁵⁵ jyːt̚²⁻³⁵/

/hɔːi̯³⁵ tɐi̯³⁵ mɔː³⁵ jyːt̚²/

(Cantonese, figurative) to make a hopeless, futile or vain effort at doing something; to ask for the moon


一期一會

ㄧ ㄑㄧˊ ㄧ ㄏㄨㄟˋ

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵ i⁵⁵⁻³⁵ xu̯eɪ̯⁵¹/

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ i⁵⁵⁻³⁵ xu̯eɪ̯⁵¹/

/jɐt̚³⁵ kʰei̯²¹ jɐt̚⁵ wuːi̯²²/

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵ i⁵⁵⁻³⁵ xu̯eɪ̯⁵¹/

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ t͡ɕʰi³⁵ i⁵⁵⁻³⁵ xu̯eɪ̯⁵¹/

/jɐt̚³⁵ kʰei̯²¹ jɐt̚⁵ wuːi̯²²/

Wasei kango (和製漢語), orthographically borrowed from Japanese 一(いち)期(ご)一(いち)会(え) (ichigo ichie).

wasei kango

you should treasure every encounter, for it will never recur


痗起痗起

/me̞i̯³³ t͡ɕʰi³ me̞i̯³³ t͡ɕʰi³/

/me̞i̯³³ t͡ɕʰi³ me̞i̯³³ t͡ɕʰi³/


浪得虛名

ㄌㄤˋ ㄉㄜˊ ㄒㄩ ㄇㄧㄥˊ

/lɑŋ⁵¹ tɤ³⁵ ɕy⁵⁵ miŋ³⁵/

/lɔːŋ²² tɐk̚⁵ hɵy̯⁵⁵ mɪŋ²¹/

/lɑŋ⁵¹ tɤ³⁵ ɕy⁵⁵ miŋ³⁵/

/lɔːŋ²² tɐk̚⁵ hɵy̯⁵⁵ mɪŋ²¹/

to not live up to one's illustrious reputation


名不虛傳

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (名不虛傳):
* → Korean: 명불허전(名不虛傳) (myeongbulheojeon)
* → Vietnamese: danh bất hư truyền (名不虛傳)

ㄇㄧㄥˊ ㄅㄨˋ ㄒㄩ ㄔㄨㄢˊ

минбусюйчуань

/miŋ³⁵ pu⁵¹ ɕy⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰu̯än³⁵/

/mɪŋ²¹ pɐt̚⁵ hɵy̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰyːn²¹/

/miŋ³⁵ pu⁵¹ ɕy⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂʰu̯än³⁵/

/mɪŋ²¹ pɐt̚⁵ hɵy̯⁵⁵ t͡sʰyːn²¹/

to live up to one's illustrious reputation


咋整

/t͡sä²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/t͡sä²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʈ͡ʂɤŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/


咋辦

/t͡sä²¹⁴⁻²¹ pän⁵¹/

/t͡sä²¹⁴⁻²¹ pän⁵¹/


兩次三番

ㄌㄧㄤˇ ㄘˋ ㄙㄢ ㄈㄢ

лянцысаньфань

/li̯ɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sʰz̩⁵¹ sän⁵⁵ fän⁵⁵/

/lœːŋ¹³ t͡sʰiː³³ saːm⁵⁵ faːn⁵⁵/

/li̯ɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sʰz̩⁵¹ sän⁵⁵ fän⁵⁵/

/lœːŋ¹³ t͡sʰiː³³ saːm⁵⁵ faːn⁵⁵/


三番兩次

ㄙㄢ ㄈㄢ ㄌㄧㄤˇ ㄘˋ

ㄙㄢ ㄈㄢ ㄌㄧㄤˇ ㄘˋ

саньфаньлянцы

/sän⁵⁵ fän⁵⁵ li̯ɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sʰz̩⁵¹/

/saːm⁵⁵ faːn⁵⁵ lœːŋ¹³ t͡sʰiː³³/

/san⁴² fan⁴² liɔŋ²¹³⁻²⁴ t͡sʰz̩²¹³/

/sam²⁴⁻¹¹ fan²⁴ li̯oŋ³¹ t͡sʰɨ⁵⁵/

/sæ̃¹¹ fæ̃¹¹ liɒ̃⁵³ t͡sʰz̩⁴⁵/

/saŋ⁵⁵ huaŋ⁵⁵⁽⁻²¹⁾ ⁽ˡ⁻⁾nˡaŋ²⁴²⁻⁵³ t͡sʰøy²¹³/

/san³³ ɸan³³ li̯æn⁴¹ t͡sʰz̩⁴⁵/

/sän⁵⁵ fän⁵⁵ li̯ɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡sʰz̩⁵¹/

/saːm⁵⁵ faːn⁵⁵ lœːŋ¹³ t͡sʰiː³³/

/san⁴² fan⁴² liɔŋ²¹³⁻²⁴ t͡sʰz̩²¹³/

/sam²⁴⁻¹¹ fan²⁴ li̯oŋ³¹ t͡sʰɨ⁵⁵/

/sæ̃¹¹ fæ̃¹¹ liɒ̃⁵³ t͡sʰz̩⁴⁵/

/san³³ ɸan³³ li̯æn⁴¹ t͡sʰz̩⁴⁵/


四週八下

/sz̩⁴⁴ ʈ͡ʂou²⁴ pa²⁴ xa⁴⁴/

/sz̩⁴⁴ ʈ͡ʂou²⁴ pa²⁴ xa⁴⁴/


打蹩腳老虎

/ta̠⁴¹ pʰi̯e̞⁴¹ t͡ɕi̯o²⁴ lɒu̯⁴¹ ɸu⁴¹/

/ta̠⁴¹ pʰi̯e̞⁴¹ t͡ɕi̯o²⁴ lɒu̯⁴¹ ɸu⁴¹/

kick someone when they are down
kick someone when they are down

(Xiang) to kick someone when they are down


打圞場

/ta̠⁴¹ lõ¹³ ʈ͡ʂan¹³/

/ta̠⁴¹ lõ¹³ t͡san¹³/

/ta̠⁴¹ lõ¹³ ʈ͡ʂan¹³/

/ta̠⁴¹ lõ¹³ t͡san¹³/

(Xiang) to mediate a dispute; to smooth things over


八仙過海

ㄅㄚ ㄒㄧㄢ ㄍㄨㄛˋ ㄏㄞˇ

/pä⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ku̯ɔ⁵¹ xaɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/paːt̚³ siːn⁵⁵ kʷɔː³³ hɔːi̯³⁵/

/pat̚³²⁻⁴ siɛn⁴⁴ ke²¹⁻⁵³ hai⁵³/

/pat̚³²⁻⁴ siɛn⁴⁴ ke¹¹⁻⁵³ hai⁵³/

/pä⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ku̯ɔ⁵¹ xaɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/paːt̚³ siːn⁵⁵ kʷɔː³³ hɔːi̯³⁵/

/pat̚³²⁻⁴ siɛn⁴⁴ ke²¹⁻⁵³ hai⁵³/

/pat̚³²⁻⁴ siɛn⁴⁴ ke¹¹⁻⁵³ hai⁵³/

八仙過海，各顯神通 八仙過海，各顯神通#Chinese

八仙过海，各显神通 八仙过海，各显神通#Chinese

Short for 八仙過海，各顯神通／八仙过海，各显神通 (bāxiānguòhǎi, gèxiǎnshéntōng, “everybody using their talents or skills to achieve a common goal”).


打圞臺

/ta̠⁴¹ lõ¹³ tai̯¹³/

/ta̠⁴¹ lõ¹³ tai̯¹³/


一損俱損，一榮俱榮

一损俱损，一荣俱荣
一榮俱榮，一損俱損

ㄧ ㄙㄨㄣˇ ㄐㄩˋ ㄙㄨㄣˇ

ㄧ ㄖㄨㄥˊ ㄐㄩˋ ㄖㄨㄥˊ

jat¹ syun² keoi¹ syun², jat¹ wing⁴ keoi¹ wing⁴

исуньцзюйсунь

/i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ su̯ən²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕy⁵¹ su̯ən²¹⁴⁻²¹ i⁵⁵⁻⁵¹ ʐʊŋ³⁵ t͡ɕy⁵¹ ʐʊŋ³⁵/

yāt syún kēui syún, yāt wìhng kēui wìhng

jat⁷ syn² koey¹ syn², jat⁷ wing⁴ koey¹ wing⁴

yed¹ xun² kêu¹ xun², yed¹ wing⁴ kêu¹ wing⁴

/jɐt̚⁵ syːn³⁵ kʰɵy̯⁵⁵ syːn³⁵ jɐt̚⁵ wɪŋ²¹ kʰɵy̯⁵⁵ wɪŋ²¹/

to be closely connected such that when one suffers damage, everyone suffers damage, and when one prospers, everyone prospers


逼上梁山

ㄅㄧ ㄕㄤˋ ㄌㄧㄤˊ ㄕㄢ

бишанляншань

/pi⁵⁵ ʂɑŋ⁵¹ li̯ɑŋ³⁵ ʂän⁵⁵/

/pɪk̚⁵ sœːŋ¹³ lœːŋ²¹ saːn⁵⁵/

/pi⁵⁵ ʂɑŋ⁵¹ li̯ɑŋ³⁵ ʂän⁵⁵/

/pɪk̚⁵ sœːŋ¹³ lœːŋ²¹ saːn⁵⁵/

From the famous Chinese novel Water Margin.

to be forced by circumstances to do something (often something one does not wish to or should not do)