Chinese Idioms
Explore over 1,000 Chinese idioms (Chengyu) and their corresponding historical narratives. Each entry details the origins, cultural context, and profound wisdom behind these timeless phrases, offering deep insight into the heritage that shaped the Chinese language.
Table of contents
发愤忘食 (So Engrossed I Forget to Eat)
发蒙振落 (Remove the Covering, Shake the Leaves)
发踪指示 (Point Out the Prey)
民不聊生 (The People Live in Misery)
民以食为天 (Food Is the People's Heaven)
芒刺在背 (Thorns in the Back)
朴素无华 (Simple and Unadorned)
机不可失 (Don't Miss the Chance)
朽木粪土 (Rotten Wood and Filthy Dirt)
西山饿夫 (The Starving Man of West Mountain)
夸父逐日 (Kuafu Chases the Sun)
动辄得咎 (Blamed for Every Move)
至死不悟 (Blind to the End)
过河拆桥 (Burn the Bridge After Crossing)
过五关斩六将 (Passing Five Gates and Slaying Six Generals)
扣盘扪烛 (Knocking the Pan, Groping the Candle)
扪虱而谈 (Cracking Lice While Talking)
扫除天下 (Sweep Clean the World)
扬扬自得 (Proud and Complacent)
扬扬得意 (Elated and Proud)
成也萧何，败也萧何 (Success and Failure Due to Xiao He)
老马识途 (The Old Horse Knows the Way)
老生常谈 (The Same Old Story)
老当益壮 (Old Yet Stronger)
老妪能解 (Even an Old Woman Can Understand)
老莱娱亲 (Lao Lai Delights His Parents)
老罴当道 (The Old Bear Blocks the Path)
老鹤乘轩 (An Old Crane Rides a Carriage)
死不旋踵 (Death Without Retreat)
死不瞑目 (Unable to Rest in Peace)
死中求生 (Seeking Life in Death)
死有余辜 (Death Cannot Atone)
死而不朽 (Deathless Legacy)
死灰复燃 (Dead Ashes Rekindled)
死诸葛走生仲达 (The Dead Zhuge Chases the Living Sima)
有名无实 (In Name Only)
有志竟成 (Where There's a Will, There's a Way)
有备无患 (Preparedness Prevents Peril)
有恃无恐 (Confident and Unafraid)
有脚阳春 (Spring Beneath His Feet)
百川归海 (All Rivers Flow to the Sea)
百无聊赖 (Utterly Bored)
百不当一 (A Hundred Cannot Match One)
百尺竿头 (A Hundred-Foot Pole)
百发百中 (A Hundred Shots, a Hundred Hits)
百废俱兴 (All Revived and Thriving)
百感交集 (A Hundred Feelings Intertwined)
百步穿杨 (Piercing a Willow at a Hundred Paces)
百锻千炼 (Tempered a Thousand Times)
百闻不如一见 (Seeing Is Believing)
曳尾涂中 (Dragging Tail in the Mud)
刚愎自用 (Headstrong and Self-Willed)
曲尽其妙 (Subtlety Perfected)
曲突徙薪 (Bend the Chimney, Move the Firewood)
曲高和寡 (Lofty Songs, Few Echoes)
肉食者鄙 (The Meat-Eaters Are Ignorant)
此地无银三百两 (The Silver Buried Here)
此而可忍，孰不可忍 (If This Can Be Endured, What Cannot)
岁在龙蛇 (The Year of the Dragon and Snake)
光彩夺目 (Dazzling Brilliance)
当务之急 (The Most Urgent Task)
当头棒喝 (A Sudden Awakening)
当局者迷 (The Outsider Sees Clear)
当断不断 (Hesitation Breeds Disaster)
回旋余地 (Room to Maneuver)
因势利导 (Guide by the Momentum)
同工异曲 (Same Tune, Different Song)
同仇敌忾 (Shared Hatred Against a Common Enemy)
同甘共苦 (Share Weal and Woe)
同病相怜 (Fellow Sufferers)
舟中敌国 (Enemies on the Same Boat)
创业维艰 (The Hardships of Starting a Business)
刎颈之交 (A Friendship to the Death)
华而不实 (Showy but Hollow)
华亭鹤唳 (The Crane's Cry at Huating)
牝牡骊黄 (The Black and the Yellow)
向火乞儿 (A Beggar Warming by the Fire)
优孟衣冠 (You Meng's Costume)
休牛放马 (Resting Oxen, Freeing Horses)
休戚相关 (Shared Joys and Sorrows)
伤风败俗 (Corrupting Public Morals)
仰人鼻息 (Living Under Another's Breath)
似是而非 (Seeming but Not)
任人唯贤 (Appoint Only the Virtuous)
合浦珠还 (Pearls Return to Hepu)
各自为政 (Each His Own Rule)
先礼后兵 (Civility Before Force)
先发制人 (Strike First to Win)
先声夺人 (Steal the Thunder)
先忧后乐 (Worry First, Joy Last)
先驱蝼蚁 (A Vanguard Among Ants)
先斩后奏 (Act First, Report Later)
危在旦夕 (Danger at Dawn)
危如累卵 (Precarious as a Stack of Eggs)
危若朝露 (As Precarious as Morning Dew)
负重致远 (Carrying a Heavy Burden Far)
负隅顽抗 (Fighting from a Corner)
名正言顺 (Proper Title and Proper Words)
名列前茅 (Ranking at the Top)
名高难副 (A Name Too Great to Bear)