Chengyu
Browse 4217 vocabulary cards in Chengyu, with Chinese words, pinyin and meanings. Study this list with spaced repetition. — Page 7
Classical four-character idioms (成语). Best after you have a basic vocabulary.
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- 默默无闻 / 默默無聞 — mò mò wú wén — unknown · unrenowned
- 三长两短 / 三長兩短 — sān cháng liǎng duǎn — unexpected misfortune · unexpected accident
- 乳臭未干 / 乳臭未乾 — rǔ xiù wèi gān — literally smell of breast milk not yet dried (idiom)
- 冷嘲热讽 / 冷嘲熱諷 — lěng cháo rè fěng — frigid irony and scorching satire (idiom) · to mock and ridicule
- 孤立无援 / 孤立無援 — gū lì wú yuán — isolated and without help
- 救死扶伤 / 救死扶傷 — jiù sǐ fú shāng — to help the dying and heal the injured
- 整装待发 / 整裝待發 — zhěng zhuāng dài fā — to get ready (for a journey)
- 无拘无束 / 無拘無束 — wú jū wú shù — free and unconstrained (idiom) · unfettered
- 绞尽脑汁 / 絞盡腦汁 — jiǎo jìn nǎo zhī — to rack one's brains
- 销声匿迹 / 銷聲匿跡 — xiāo shēng nì jì — to vanish without trace (idiom)
- 鸡毛蒜皮 / 雞毛蒜皮 — jī máo suàn pí — literally chicken feathers and garlic skins (idiom)
- 一刀两断 / 一刀兩斷 — yī dāo liǎng duàn — to make a clean break with · to have nothing more to do with
- 不知所云 — bù zhī suǒ yún — to not know what someone is driving at
- 不计其数 / 不計其數 — bù jì qí shù — literally their number cannot be counted (idiom) · figuratively countless
- 事与愿违 / 事與願違 — shì yǔ yuàn wéi — things turn out contrary to the way one wishes (idiom)
- 公事公办 / 公事公辦 — gōng shì gōng bàn — to do things in a strictly businesslike manner (idiom)
- 大功告成 — dà gōng gào chéng — successfully accomplished (project or goal)
- 夸大其词 / 誇大其詞 — kuā dà qí cí — to exaggerate
- 高人一等 — gāo rén yī děng — a cut above others
- 不闻不问 / 不聞不問 — bù wén bù wèn — not to hear, not to question (idiom)
- 两手空空 / 兩手空空 — liǎng shǒu kōng kōng — empty-handed (idiom) · figuratively not receiving anything
- 何去何从 / 何去何從 — hé qù hé cóng — what course to follow · what path to take
- 倾家荡产 / 傾家蕩產 — qīng jiā dàng chǎn — to lose a family fortune (idiom)
- 吹毛求疵 — chuī máo qiú cī — literally to blow apart the hairs upon a fur to discover any defect (idiom) · figuratively to be fastidious
- 如鱼得水 / 如魚得水 — rú yú dé shuǐ — like a fish back in water (idiom) · glad to be back in one's proper surroundings
- 据为己有 / 據為己有 — jù wéi jǐ yǒu — to illegally take possession of · to appropriate
- 自相矛盾 — zì xiāng máo dùn — to contradict oneself
- 自给自足 / 自給自足 — zì jǐ zì zú — self-sufficiency
- 长途跋涉 / 長途跋涉 — cháng tú bá shè — long and difficult trek
- 面目全非 — miàn mù quán fēi — nothing remains the same (idiom) · change beyond recognition
- 一蹶不振 — yī jué bù zhèn — one stumble, unable to rise (idiom) · a setback leading to total collapse
- 听天由命 / 聽天由命 — tīng tiān yóu mìng — to submit to the will of heaven · to resign oneself to fate · to trust to luck
- 坚不可摧 / 堅不可摧 — jiān bù kě cuī — invulnerable · indestructible · impregnable
- 摇摇欲坠 / 搖搖欲墜 — yáo yáo yù zhuì — tottering
- 擦肩而过 / 擦肩而過 — cā jiān ér guò — to brush past · to pass by (someone)
- 火上浇油 / 火上澆油 — huǒ shàng jiāo yóu — to pour oil on the fire (idiom) · figuratively to aggravate a situation
- 聪明才智 / 聰明才智 — cōng ming cái zhì — intelligence and ability
- 背道而驰 / 背道而馳 — bèi dào ér chí — to run in the opposite direction (idiom) · to run counter to
- 一丝不苟 / 一絲不苟 — yī sī bù gǒu — not one thread loose (idiom) · strictly according to the rules
- 一年一度 — yī nián yī dù — annual · once a year
- 出生入死 — chū shēng rù sǐ — from the cradle to the grave (idiom) · to go through fire and water
- 叹为观止 / 嘆為觀止 — tàn wéi guān zhǐ — to gasp in amazement
- 多姿多彩 — duō zī duō cǎi — diversity (of forms and colors)
- 大相径庭 / 大相徑庭 — dà xiāng jìng tíng — as different as can be (idiom)
- 引人入胜 / 引人入勝 — yǐn rén rù shèng — to enchant
- 忠心耿耿 — zhōng xīn gěng gěng — loyal and devoted (idiom) · faithful and true
- 恨之入骨 — hèn zhī rù gǔ — to hate someone to the bone (idiom)
- 悲痛欲绝 / 悲痛欲絕 — bēi tòng yù jué — to be overcome with grief
- 操之过急 / 操之過急 — cāo zhī guò jí — to act with undue haste (idiom) · eager and impatient
- 无中生有 / 無中生有 — wú zhōng shēng yǒu — to create something from nothing (idiom)