大器晚成 dà qì wǎn chéng
Great talent takes a long time to mature: a late bloomer.
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Every expression in the dictionary, A to Z — pick a language, then a letter.
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天下第一 tiān xià dì yī
The best in the whole world; second to none.
天时地利人和 tiān shí dì lì rén hé
The three conditions for success: the right moment, a favourable place and people who pull together.
天理难容 tiān lǐ nán róng
So wicked that Heaven itself could not let it pass.
天经地义 tiān jīng dì yì
Perfectly right and natural; a principle nobody would question.
天罗地网 tiān luó dì wǎng
Nets spread above and below so that nothing can slip through: a tight ring that leaves no way out.
天荒地老 tiān huāng dì lǎo
For as long as heaven and earth last; for ever and ever.
天长地久 tiān cháng dì jiǔ
As lasting as heaven and earth; for ever.
夫唱妇随 fū chàng fù suí
The wife goes along with whatever the husband says or does.
始终如一 shǐ zhōng rú yī
The same from start to finish; never wavering.
守口如瓶 shǒu kǒu rú píng
To keep completely silent about something, like a bottle with its cork pushed in.
守株待兔 shǒu zhū dài tù
To wait for a lucky accident to repeat itself instead of making an effort; to sit and hope for a windfall.
安居乐业 ān jū lè yè
To live a settled, peaceful life and be content in one's work.
安贫乐道 ān pín lè dào
To live contentedly in poverty while holding to one's principles and finding joy in them.
对不起 duì bu qǐ
Sorry, I am sorry — the standard words of apology.
寻花问柳 xún huā wèn liǔ
To visit prostitutes or run after women; a disapproving euphemism for a man's womanising.
尊老爱幼 zūn lǎo ài yòu
To respect the elderly and care for the young.
小人得志 xiǎo rén dé zhì
A mean, small-minded person has gained power or success and now behaves arrogantly.
尽心竭力 jìn xīn jié lì
To put your whole heart and all your strength into a task; to do your very best for someone or something.
居安思危 jū ān sī wēi
To stay alert to possible dangers even when things are going well.
平安无事 píng ān wú shì
Unharmed and in no trouble: nothing bad has happened.
开卷有益 kāi juàn yǒu yì
Reading always does you good: whenever you open a book you learn something.
弄假成真 nòng jiǎ chéng zhēn
Something that began as a pretence, a joke or an act ends up becoming real, usually without anyone intending it.
心中有数 xīn zhōng yǒu shù
To have a clear idea of how things stand and what to do about them, even without saying so.
心中有鬼 xīn zhōng yǒu guǐ
To have something to hide: a guilty secret or a dishonest plan that makes a person uneasy.
心服口服 xīn fú kǒu fú
To be completely convinced, sincerely and not just in words.
心甘情愿 xīn gān qíng yuàn
Completely willing; glad to do something or to pay a price without being forced.
心高气傲 xīn gāo qì ào
Proud and ambitious, with a superior manner: thinking so highly of your own ability that you will not accept advice, defeat or a modest position.
忠君爱国 zhōng jūn ài guó
Loyal to the monarch and devoted to the country: the Confucian ideal expected of officials and subjects in imperial times.
恒河沙数 héng hé shā shù
Too many to count, like the sand in the bed of the River Ganges.
恭喜发财 gōng xǐ fā cái
The classic Lunar New Year greeting: congratulations, and may you prosper.
恶有恶报 è yǒu è bào
Evil deeds bring evil consequences on the person who does them.
患得患失 huàn dé huàn shī
To worry all the time about what you might gain or lose, and so be unable to act calmly or make up your mind.
惊天动地 jīng tiān dòng dì
Earth-shaking: so loud, so great or so astonishing that it seems to shake heaven and earth.
惊弓之鸟 jīng gōng zhī niǎo
Someone who was badly frightened once and now panics at the slightest sign of danger, like a bird that has already felt an arrow.
慎终追远 shèn zhōng zhuī yuǎn
To carry out one's parents' funeral rites with care and keep honouring distant ancestors.
打电话 dǎ diàn huà
To ring someone up, to call them on the phone.
按兵不动 àn bīng bù dòng
To hold back and take no action for now, waiting to see how things develop.
探囊取物 tàn náng qǔ wù
As easy as reaching into your own bag and taking something out: said of a task that someone can carry out with no effort at all.
措手不及 cuò shǒu bù jí
Caught unprepared: something happens so suddenly that there is no time to react.
改邪归正 gǎi xié guī zhèng
To give up bad ways and start living honestly.
敬而远之 jìng ér yuǎn zhī
To stay politely away from someone or something: you show respect but do not want to get close.
文以载道 wén yǐ zài dào
Literature as a bearer of moral truth: the traditional Chinese view that writing should transmit the Way and teach, not merely entertain.
文治武功 wén zhì wǔ gōng
A ruler's achievements in both civil government and war.
斩草除根 zhǎn cǎo chú gēn
To remove the cause of a problem completely so that it can never come back, as weeds must be pulled up by the roots.
无中生有 wú zhōng shēng yǒu
To make something up out of thin air: to invent facts, rumours or accusations that have no basis at all.
无功不受禄 wú gōng bù shòu lù
One should not accept a reward, gift or payment that one has done nothing to earn.
无名小卒 wú míng xiǎo zú
A nobody: a person with no name, rank or influence, like an unknown foot soldier.
无毒不丈夫 wú dú bù zhàng fu
A man who is not ruthless will never achieve great things.
无法无天 wú fǎ wú tiān
Respecting neither the law nor any higher authority; wild and unrestrained.
时势造英雄 shí shì zào yīng xióng
Great figures are made by the circumstances of their age: troubled or fast-changing times give able people the chance to rise.
春夏秋冬 chūn xià qiū dōng
The four seasons named in order: spring, summer, autumn and winter.
是可忍，孰不可忍 shì kě rěn, shú bù kě rěn
If we put up with this, is there anything we would not put up with?
替天行道 tì tiān xíng dào
To carry out justice on Heaven's behalf: to punish the wicked yourself when the authorities will not.
有勇无谋 yǒu yǒng wú móu
Brave but without a plan: daring in action yet lacking judgement and strategy.
有名无实 yǒu míng wú shí
Existing in name only, with no real power, substance or effect behind it.
有始无终 yǒu shǐ wú zhōng
To begin something and then drop it before it is done.
有求必应 yǒu qiú bì yìng
To grant whatever is asked.
朝三暮四 zhāo sān mù sì
Fickle; always changing one's mind or loyalties.
棋逢敌手 qí féng dí shǒu
To meet an opponent of exactly equal skill, so that neither side can easily win.
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