Chengyu
Browse 4217 vocabulary cards in Chengyu, with Chinese words, pinyin and meanings. Study this list with spaced repetition. — Page 27
Classical four-character idioms (成语). Best after you have a basic vocabulary.
30-day free trial. No payment details required.
- 坚韧不拔 / 堅韌不拔 — jiān rèn bù bá — firm and indomitable (idiom) · tenacious and unyielding
- 夕阳西下 / 夕陽西下 — xī yáng xī xià — the sun sets in the west (idiom)
- 夜深人静 / 夜深人靜 — yè shēn rén jìng — in the dead of night (idiom)
- 大吉大利 — dà jí dà lì — great luck, great profit (idiom) · everything is thriving
- 大腹便便 — dà fù pián pián — big-bellied (idiom)
- 大行其道 — dà xíng qí dào — rampant
- 妄自菲薄 — wàng zì fěi bó — to be unduly humble (idiom)
- 妙手回春 — miào shǒu huí chūn — (of a doctor) to effect a miracle cure
- 始料未及 — shǐ liào wèi jí — not expected at the outset (idiom)
- 孤陋寡闻 / 孤陋寡聞 — gū lòu guǎ wén — ignorant and inexperienced
- 安营扎寨 / 安營紮寨 — ān yíng zhā zhài — to set up camp
- 寿终正寝 / 壽終正寢 — shòu zhōng zhèng qǐn — to die of old age · to die in one's bed at a ripe old age
- 居心不良 — jū xīn bù liáng — to harbor evil intentions (idiom)
- 平心而论 / 平心而論 — píng xīn ér lùn — in all fairness · objectively speaking
- 应接不暇 / 應接不暇 — yìng jiē bù xiá — more than one can attend to (idiom)
- 应运而生 / 應運而生 — yìng yùn ér shēng — to emerge to meet a historic destiny (idiom)
- 废寝忘食 / 廢寢忘食 — fèi qǐn wàng shí — to skip one's sleep and meals · to be completely wrapped up in one's work
- 徒有虚名 / 徒有虛名 — tú yǒu xū míng — with an undeserved reputation (idiom) · unwarranted fame
- 得过且过 / 得過且過 — dé guò qiě guò — satisfied just to get through (idiom) · to muddle through
- 心慌意乱 / 心慌意亂 — xīn huāng yì luàn — confused
- 心花怒放 — xīn huā nù fàng — to burst with joy (idiom)
- 惟妙惟肖 — wéi miào wéi xiào — to imitate to perfection
- 慢条斯理 / 慢條斯理 — màn tiáo sī lǐ — unhurried
- 成家立业 / 成家立業 — chéng jiā lì yè — to get married and start a career (idiom)
- 披荆斩棘 / 披荊斬棘 — pī jīng zhǎn jí — literally to cut one's way through thistles and thorns (idiom)
- 拉拉扯扯 — lā lā chě chě — to tug at
- 招兵买马 / 招兵買馬 — zhāo bīng mǎi mǎ — literally to recruit soldiers and buy horses (idiom)
- 持之以恒 / 持之以恆 — chí zhī yǐ héng — to pursue unremittingly (idiom) · to persevere
- 挥金如土 / 揮金如土 — huī jīn rú tǔ — literally to squander money like dirt (idiom)
- 掩耳盗铃 / 掩耳盜鈴 — yǎn ěr dào líng — literally to cover one's ears whilst stealing a bell
- 故地重游 / 故地重遊 — gù dì chóng yóu — see 旧地重游 jiù dì chóng yóu
- 故弄玄虚 / 故弄玄虛 — gù nòng xuán xū — deliberately mystifying
- 旁若无人 / 旁若無人 — páng ruò wú rén — to act as though there were nobody else present
- 无名之辈 / 無名之輩 — wú míng zhī bèi — unknown person · nobody
- 有说有笑 / 有說有笑 — yǒu shuō yǒu xiào — talking and laughing
- 杯水车薪 / 杯水車薪 — bēi shuǐ chē xīn — literally a cup of water on a burning cart of firewood (idiom) · figuratively an utterly inadequate measure
- 比比皆是 — bǐ bǐ jiē shì — can be found everywhere
- 水泄不通 / 水洩不通 — shuǐ xiè bù tōng — not one drop can trickle through (idiom)
- 沆瀣一气 / 沆瀣一氣 — hàng xiè yī qì — to act in collusion (idiom) · in cahoots with
- 深入人心 — shēn rù rén xīn — to enter deeply into people's hearts
- 炉火纯青 / 爐火純青 — lú huǒ chún qīng — the stove fire has turned bright green (allusion to Daoist alchemy) (idiom)
- 热情洋溢 / 熱情洋溢 — rè qíng yáng yì — brimming with enthusiasm (idiom) · full of warmth
- 生离死别 / 生離死別 — shēng lí sǐ bié — separated in life and death
- 百战百胜 / 百戰百勝 — bǎi zhàn bǎi shèng — to emerge victorious in every battle
- 相濡以沫 — xiāng rú yǐ mò — (of fish) to moisten each other with spittle (when out of the water) (idiom)
- 短兵相接 — duǎn bīng xiāng jiē — literally short-weaponed soldiery fight one another (idiom) · fierce hand-to-hand infantry combat
- 破釜沉舟 — pò fǔ chén zhōu — literally to break the cauldrons and sink the boats (idiom) · figuratively to cut off one's means of retreat
- 秘而不宣 / 祕而不宣 — mì ér bù xuān — to withhold information
- 稳扎稳打 / 穩扎穩打 — wěn zhā wěn dǎ — to go steady and strike hard (in fighting)
- 穿针引线 / 穿針引線 — chuān zhēn yǐn xiàn — literally to thread a needle (idiom) · figuratively to act as a go-between