Chengyu

Browse 4217 vocabulary cards in Chengyu, with Chinese words, pinyin and meanings. Study this list with spaced repetition. — Page 41

Classical four-character idioms (成语). Best after you have a basic vocabulary.

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• 人烟稀少 / 人煙稀少 — rén yān xī shǎo — no sign of human habitation (idiom) · desolate
• 仗义执言 / 仗義執言 — zhàng yì zhí yán — to speak out for justice (idiom) · to take a stand on a matter of principle
• 休戚相关 / 休戚相關 — xiū qī xiāng guān — to share the same interests (idiom)
• 俯拾皆是 — fǔ shí jiē shì — literally so numerous that one could just bend down and pick them up (idiom)
• 倒行逆施 — dào xíng nì shī — to go against the tide (idiom) · to do things all wrong
• 借题发挥 / 借題發揮 — jiè tí fā huī — to use the current topic to put over one's own ideas · to use something as a pretext to make a fuss
• 假冒伪劣 / 假冒偽劣 — jiǎ mào wěi liè — cheap quality counterfeit (goods)
• 僧多粥少 — sēng duō zhōu shǎo — literally many monks and not much gruel (idiom)
• 入木三分 — rù mù sān fēn — written in a forceful hand
• 兵临城下 / 兵臨城下 — bīng lín chéng xià — soldiers at the city walls (idiom) · figuratively at a critical juncture
• 其貌不扬 / 其貌不揚 — qí mào bù yáng — nothing special to look at
• 凤毛麟角 / 鳳毛麟角 — fèng máo lín jiǎo — literally as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns (idiom)
• 凹凸不平 — āo tū bù píng — uneven (surface) · bumpy (road)
• 分庭抗礼 / 分庭抗禮 — fēn tíng kàng lǐ — peer competition
• 功德无量 / 功德無量 — gōng dé wú liàng — no end of virtuous achievements (idiom) · boundless beneficence
• 勾肩搭背 — gōu jiān dā bèi — arms around each other's shoulders
• 半工半读 / 半工半讀 — bàn gōng bàn dú — part work, part study
• 博大精深 — bó dà jīng shēn — wide-ranging and profound
• 口诛笔伐 / 口誅筆伐 — kǒu zhū bǐ fá — to condemn in speech and in writing (idiom)
• 各执一词 / 各執一詞 — gè zhí yī cí — each sticks to his own version (idiom) · a dialogue of the deaf
• 各自为政 / 各自為政 — gè zì wéi zhèng — to do things each in one's own way
• 各行其是 — gè xíng qí shì — each one does what he thinks is right (idiom) · each goes his own way
• 名不符实 / 名不符實 — míng bù fú shí — the name does not correspond to reality (idiom) · it doesn't live up to its reputation
• 名存实亡 / 名存實亡 — míng cún shí wáng — the name remains, but the reality is gone (idiom)
• 含饴弄孙 / 含飴弄孫 — hán yí nòng sūn — literally to play with one's grandchildren while eating candy (idiom)
• 善男信女 — shàn nán xìn nǚ — lay practitioners of Buddhism
• 嗷嗷待哺 — áo áo dài bǔ — cry piteously for food
• 嘘寒问暖 / 噓寒問暖 — xū hán wèn nuǎn — to enquire solicitously about someone's well-being (idiom)
• 四通八达 / 四通八達 — sì tōng bā dá — roads open in all directions (idiom) · accessible from all sides
• 因噎废食 / 因噎廢食 — yīn yē fèi shí — literally not eating for fear of choking (idiom) · figuratively to cut off one's nose to spite one's face
• 因地制宜 — yīn dì zhì yí — to use methods in line with local circumstances
• 因小失大 — yīn xiǎo shī dà — to save a little only to lose a lot (idiom)
• 垂暮之年 — chuí mù zhī nián — old age
• 声泪俱下 / 聲淚俱下 — shēng lèi jù xià — to shed tears while recounting something
• 夜不闭户 / 夜不閉戶 — yè bù bì hù — literally doors not locked at night (idiom) · figuratively stable society
• 夜郎自大 — yè láng zì dà — literally Yelang thinks highly of itself (idiom)
• 大器晚成 — dà qì wǎn chéng — literally it takes a long time to make a big pot (idiom) · figuratively a great talent matures slowly
• 大惊失色 / 大驚失色 — dà jīng shī sè — to turn pale with fright (idiom)
• 大敌当前 / 大敵當前 — dà dí dāng qián — to be faced with a formidable enemy
• 大步流星 — dà bù liú xīng — at a stride
• 好逸恶劳 / 好逸惡勞 — hào yì wù láo — to love ease and comfort and hate work (idiom)
• 如临大敌 / 如臨大敵 — rú lín dà dí — literally as if meeting a great enemy (idiom)
• 始终不渝 / 始終不渝 — shǐ zhōng bù yú — unswerving
• 威风凛凛 / 威風凜凜 — wēi fēng lǐn lǐn — majestic
• 学无止境 / 學無止境 — xué wú zhǐ jìng — no end to learning (idiom) · There's always something new to study.
• 寓教于乐 / 寓教於樂 — yù jiào yú lè — to make learning fun
• 屡教不改 / 屢教不改 — lǚ jiào bù gǎi — literally not to change, despite repeated admonition
• 峥嵘岁月 / 崢嶸歲月 — zhēng róng suì yuè — eventful years (idiom)
• 心急火燎 — xīn jí huǒ liǎo — see 心急如焚 xīn jí rú fén
• 忆苦思甜 / 憶苦思甜 — yì kǔ sī tián — to view one's past as miserable and one's present as happy (idiom)