shí wén duàn zì

to be literate

cí bù dá yì

words do not express one's intent; poorly expressed; senseless; inarticulate

yǔ jīng sì zuò

one's words or speech astonishes every attendee

wù rén zǐ dì

💡 Муу багш сурагчдаа буруу замаар хөтөлж хохироох.

diào hǔ lí shān

to lure an opponent out; to get rid of an opponent or a problem to achieve one's goal

直译: to move the tiger away from the mountain

tán hé róng yì

it is no easy matter to give good advice (especially to one's superior); to speak is difficult

tán tiān shuō dì

to chat endlessly

直译: to discuss the heavens and talk about the earth

tán xiào fēng shēng

to talk in a jovial mood; to joke together; to talk cheerfully and wittily

tán hǔ sè biàn

to become scared when a particular thing is mentioned

bài zǐ huí tóu

return of the prodigal son

huò bù duì bǎn

the goods do not match their descriptions

出处: From Cantonese 貨不對辦／货不对办.

huò zhēn jià shí

high quality at a decent price; genuine goods at fair prices

zǒu wéi shàng jì

If all else fails, retreat. / Fleeing is the best stratagem (of the Thirty-Six Stratagems).

出处: From the Book of Southern Qi

zǒu zǒu tíng tíng

💡 Явж явж зогсох — байн байн зогсож явах.

zǒu mǎ shàng rèn

💡 Албан тушаалд шинээр очиж ажлаа авах.

zǒu mǎ guān huā

💡 Морин дээрээс цэцэг харах — өнгөц, яаруу үзэх.

直译: ride on horseback to see flowers

出处: From the story of Tang-dynasty poet Meng Jiao (孟郊) admiring flowers while riding on horseback, after his success in the imperial examinations at the age of 46. He composed the following poem at the time to express his joy

qǐ jū yǐn shí

synonym of 飲食起居 /饮食起居 (yǐnshíqǐjū, “activities and rest; daily life”)

zú bù chū hù

💡 Гэрээсээ гарахгүйгээр (юм хийх).

pǎo duàn tuǐ

💡 Хөл тасартал гүйх — маш их явж зүдрэх.

shēn wài zhī wù

mere worldly possessions; things external to one's life

shēn wú fēn wén

penniless

shēn qīng yán wēi

the words of the lowly carry little weight

zhuǎn lái zhuǎn qù

to rove around; to walk back and forth; to run around in circles

qīng chē shú lù

to perform a task with which one is very familiar with great ease

出处: See 駕輕就熟／驾轻就熟 (jiàqīngjiùshú).

shū dǎ yíng yào

to refuse to accept the outcome after losing

直译: beat (the opponent) when one loses, but only accept (the results) when one wins

guò yǎn yún yān

something as transient as clouds and mist

jìn shuǐ lóu tái

to have a close relationship with someone or be in close proximity to something, which confers advantages

lián běn dài lì

💡 Үндсэн мөнгө, хүүгийн хамт.

lián shēng guì zǐ

to give birth to one son after another

chí yí bù jué

to hesitate and not make a decision

shì kě ér zhǐ

💡 Хэрэгтэй хэмжээндээ хүрээд зогсох, хэтрүүлэхгүй байх.

shì dé qí fǎn

to run counter to one's desire; to have the exact opposite effect of what one wished; to backfire

tōng lì hé zuò

to work together; to make a concerted effort to do a task

tōng qíng dá lǐ

acting with or showing good sense; sensible; fair and reasonable