shí wǔ gè diào tǒng dǎ shuǐ qī shàng bā xià

to be nervous; to be anxious

直译: Fifteen buckets draw water from the well—seven buckets aboveground, eight below ground.

hé shàng xùn dào shi guǎn dé kuān

to be a busybody

直译: A Buddhist monk teaches a Daoist priest a lesson - interfering beyond his own business.

xiǎo hé shàng niàn jīng — yǒu kǒu wú xīn⚠ 拼音待校

to not fully understand; to be half-hearted

直译: Little monk recites scripture ― has a mouth but no heart

xiǎo dà jiě r cái xiè zi

getting ready for what's to come while there's time to spare

直译: An [unmarried] young girl cutting up diapers [for the future baby]

出处: Short for 小大姐兒裁械子——閒時置下忙時用／小大姐儿裁械子——闲时置下忙时用 (“put aside when not busy, use when busy”)

niú pí dēng long

stupid or stubborn person; someone who does not understand or listen to others; someone who understands in one's mind

直译: lantern made of cattle hide

出处: First part of a xiehouyu. The second part could be: * 點不明 (Mandarin) / 點極都唔明 (Cantonese) – cannot be lit / cannot be made to understand * 肚裡亮 – bright inside / understand in one's mind

zhū bā jiè zhào jìng zi lǐ wài bù shì rén

to be unable to make anybody happy; to please none of them

直译: Zhu Bajie looks at the mirror - not a human both inside and outside

wáng bā kàn lǜ dòu — kàn duì yǎn le⚠ 拼音待校

Describes two ugly people who find each other attractive.

直译: A tortoise gazes at two mung beans ― taking a fancy to each other. (because a tortoise's eyes look like two mung beans)

huáng dì de nǚ ér bù chóu jià

someone or something that is always in demand

直译: The emperor's daughter - need not worry about the lack of a marital match

xiù cái yù dào bīng yǒu lǐ shuō bù qīng

like talking to a wall

直译: A scholar meets a soldier ― cannot use reason with him.

lǎo wáng mài guā zì mài zì kuā

to boast about one's own products or works

直译: Old Wang selling melons - he sells and boasts about them himself

huáng shǔ láng gěi jī bài nián méi ān hǎo xīn

Greeks bearing gifts; wolf in sheep's clothing

直译: The weasel pays the chicken a courtesy call on New Year's Day ― he does not have good intentions!

出处: Weasels are known to prey on chickens in some circumstances.